The Protector
by secrethalfblood
Summary: Cali and Will are demigods who live next to each other outside of Camp Halfblood, Will is constantly trying to look out for Cali which she resents because she hates being taken care of and can't figure out why he's trying to protect her. He's the son of Hermes she's the daughter of Aphrodite, which she hates, because she doesn't want anything to do with beauty and love.
1. Chapter 1

This story is based in the world invented by Rick Riordan with a mix of original and cannon characters. All credit of the Percy Jackson series and it's characters to Rick Riordan. Hope you enjoy!

You know that look when your parents give you when you screw up? As if everything you've ever done or become was just a disappointment. Well, I get that look a lot, but not from my parents. I'd never met my mom, and my Dad can hardly stand to look at me, but my little brother Max has perfected it. And not for the first time it was burning through me.

"Max, I said I was sorry." I said following him as he stalked up the steps to our school.

"I don't want to hear it Cali." He spat, refusing to look at me as we entered the building. The whitewashed cinderblock walls were lined with shabby green lockers and lit with florescent lighting, which only increased its resemblance to a prison.

"If you'd let me explain-" I started but he cut me off.

"Go away."

"Would you just listen?"

I caught his arm forcing him to stop, but he pulled out of my grip.

"No!" he said furiously while turning to face me. "I'm done listening to you! I'm done with your excuses!"

He was only fourteen, but he was already taller than me, with light brown hair and dark blue eyes that were looking at me with such resentment and contempt I could have sworn I was looking at my father.

"I didn't mean for it to happen."

"Well it did." He said acidly. "And now thanks to you, my Mom says I'm not allowed anywhere near you. I'm not even supposed to speak to you any more."

"What?" I asked weakly, ice flooding my veins.

Max and I weren't fully related. Technically he was my half brother, but he was the only person that I really cared about or considered family. He lived with his mother who hated our father as much as I did. She hated me, if it were possible, even more. She thought I was a bad influence and if I was honest with myself, I couldn't blame her. But I couldn't tell her the truth any more than I could tell Max. If I tried to explain why all these horrible things happened to me, she wouldn't just hate me, she'd think I was insane and make sure I never saw Max again unless it was from inside a straightjacket and padded cell.

"That's right." Max said glaring up at me. "She heard you got arrested. Everyone did. And now she wants me to switch schools to avoid you."

"She can't do that." I said in horror. School was the only place I saw him these days. He was the only reason I showed up.

"Of course she can Cali, she's my mom! God!" he said still clearly furious and a couple of freshmen looked our way. "You knew she was already angry about what happened at the liquor store!"

"I didn't steal anything." I retorted angrily.

"Yes, but you didn't have to convince the owner to give you all that alcohol." He argued. "She doesn't believe that people just give you stuff, and neither did the police when he got the sense to call them. Now she's trying to separate us completely. Why do you always have to do things that are so stupid?"

I didn't answer and he looked away.

"It's like you want to get into trouble." He said bitterly.

I opened my mouth to defend myself but words failed me. I felt anger and bitterness rise within me but I forced myself to stay calm. There were so many things I wanted to tell him but I couldn't. He'd never understand. How could he?

I let out a sigh and put my head in my hands. It was a full thirty seconds before I could speak.

"Look, I said I'm sorry. What more do you want from me?"

"The truth."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Why did you break into that car?"

"I told you-"

"No I'm not buying what you told the police about the muggers," he said his eyes narrowing in anger. "There were witnesses. No one was in that alley but you."

This wasn't true. The fact was that there had been two furys in that alley way as well but thanks to the mist the mortal witnesses hadn't seen them. From what I could tell, all they saw was some crazy teenager breaking into a Ferrari and using a tire iron to ward off a couple of really angry crows or something.

There was a moment's pause in which he became impatient.

"Well?" he demanded.

"What do you want me to say?" I asked quietly.

"I want you to say why you did it!" He said in exasperation. "You've done a lot of stupid stuff Cali, but I can't see you trying to steal a car. So you must have had a reason for smashing through the window."

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." I muttered.

"Try me."

"You want to know the truth?"

"Yes!"

"Fine." I spat, then looked over my shoulder to see if any of the passing students were listening. There were a few sophomores lingering around a locker a few feet down the hall, but after I shot them a look that promised pain, they scurried off to their first period class. "If you want to know why I broke into that car I'll tell you, but you won't believe me. You'll just get mad."

"Not if it's the truth."

I let out a hollow laugh.

"Yeah ok." I said sarcastically but took a deep breath then spoke. "The real reason I broke into that car was to get a weapon to fight off the freaky demon bird monsters that only I could see that were attacking me in the alley way."

Normally, I wouldn't have had to resort to a tire iron. I almost always kept the daggers my mother had given me with me no matter where I went. They were enchanted and had the ability to turn into any sort of accessory from bobby pins to bracelets, but the furys had managed to disarm me and I was looking for anything I could get.

"You could have just said you weren't going to tell me." Max said hatred in his eyes. "You didn't have to make up this ridiculous story just to make fun of me."

"It's the truth." I said helplessly.

"Stop lying Cali!" he shouted. Several heads turned our way and he lowered his voice, but his tone burned with poorly repressed fury. "Sometimes I feel like that's all you know how to do."

With one final look of disgust, he turned and started walking to class.

"Max-"

"Just go away!" he shouted, cutting me off without bothering to turn around.

I watched him go feeling a mix of fury and guilt that both made me want to go after him, and leave and never have to see that anger in his eyes ever again. Several people were staring now, but when they saw I'd noticed they quickly shuffled away, all clearly whispering about the same thing. Me.

I did my best to ignore them. I was used to people talking about me, and while it was never fun, I was pretty sure the rumors about me were as horrible as they could get. What was one more?

Without knowing what to do, I glanced out the window wondering if it was a nice enough day to bother skipping class, but the clouds above threatened rain so I decided if I was going to be anywhere it might as well be here.

Without really meaning too, I focused on my reflection in the glass.

I didn't like looking at myself if I could avoid it. It was hard when every time I looked in the mirror I saw exactly who I didn't want to be. The daughter of Aphrodite.

I know most people, if they suddenly had woken up as the child of the Goddess of love and beauty might have thought they won the genetic jackpot, but most people were idiots.

I hated it.

When I was younger, my father always told me I looked just like her. Now, he could barely stand to look at me.

Everywhere I went people stared. They talked about me while I just wanted to be left alone. I didn't want to be reminded of my mother and didn't want to be beautiful.

I tried everything, refusing to wear make up, wearing baggy clothes, hats, nothing worked, people still stared.

I scowled at the long light brown hair that refused to stay short no matter how many times I cut it. In my anger my eyes were bright green, most of the time they were either blue or green, but they always changed shades depending on my mood.

"Trouble in paradise?"

I turned to see a tall skinny boy with dark hair and eyes walking over to me with a smirk. He was attractive in a dangerous sort of way that made most girls scared to talk to him even if they all wanted to date him, but Tyler Lang didn't date girls, he used them.

"What do you want?" I asked irritated. I wasn't in the mood to deal with Tyler right now, and I could tell by his smirk he'd heard what had happened.

"Nothing in particular." He said grinning.

"Good. Then leave me alone." I snapped turning and walking down the hall.

He chuckled.

"You know, I heard something interesting about you this weekend." He said amused quickly closing the distance between us. Everyone avoided his eye as we progressed down the hall. Most people were afraid of him but I wasn't.

I'd met Tyler last year, we'd had a study hall together and while he was a senior and a year older than me, he was the closest thing I had to a friend in this place. He came to school about as often as I did, and if he was here, he was usually with me.

"You and everyone else." I said annoyed.

"Is that why you're in such a bad mood?"

"Max doesn't want to talk to me."

"Is that all?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

I glared at him.

"I don't see why you're brother's opinion matters to you so much." he said indifferently. He was always irritated with how much I cared about my Max. "Personally I wouldn't bother with him. He seems like a bit of a boy scout to me."

"Shut up Tyler." I said angrily and he shrugged.

"I'm just saying, you're wasting your time trying to be something for him you're just never going to be."

"Which is?"

"Good." He said with a significant look. "You're never going to be the perfect sister he expects. Why do you try so hard to be someone you're not when you're clearly so much better at being bad?"

"You say that as if you know me."

"Far better than anyone else here." He said with a smirk. "Including your brother."

"Thanks for reminding me." I said darkly. "I need new friends."

"I'm your only friend."

I glared at him and he grinned.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing. It's just," he paused his eyes glittering. "I didn't see you as the car stealing type."

"I wasn't trying to steal it." I said angrily starting to walk away but he followed.

"So you smashed the window for a better look at the interior?" he asked in amused sarcasm.

"No."

"Well then explain."

I shot him another look but again he smiled and I felt a fraction of my anger subside.

"If you must know," I sighed. "I wanted the tire iron inside."

"Alright Parker." He said still smirking. "If that's the story you want to go with."

"It's the truth." I snapped.

"Sure," he said cutting me off. "I'm just surprised you got arrested that's all. When you managed to talk the cops out of arresting us that night they caught us with all that booze you convinced the liquor store manager to give us, I thought you could get out of anything."

"Well apparently not." I said glowering down the hall.

"Speaking of alcohol…" he said putting an arm around my shoulder.

"Knock it off Tyler." I said irritated and pushing him off. "I'm not getting you or your friends anything else right now. I'm already on thin ice."

"That's adorable." He said laughing.

"I'm serious." I said stubbornly and looking up at him. He raised an eyebrow.

"Well that's a shame." He said his voice neutral but I knew he was angry. "I was going to invite you to the Halloween party my cousin was planning in a few weeks, but you know, seeing as you're on probation, you wouldn't want to risk it…"

I hesitated. I opened my mouth to speak, unsure if my mind was changed, but before I could say anything, an angry voice spoke from behind us.

"That's right. She wouldn't."

I froze feeling as if my stomach had dropped through the floor.

"Excuse me?" Tyler said turning and I closed my eyes, wishing I were anywhere but here.

"She's in enough trouble as it is." Said the voice and against my better judgment, I opened my eyes and turned to see an even taller boy, with an athletic build, short brown hair, and light gray eyes that were glaring at Tyler in dislike. "She doesn't need you making it any worse for her."

"Parker, is this a friend of yours?" Tyler asked looking momentarily wrong footed, almost intimidated. Will had that effect on people when he was angry and right now, he looked as if he was considering killing Tyler with his bare hands.

"No." I said quickly but Will rolled his eyes.

"Cali's got a bad habit of lying." He folded his arms over his chest. "But don't let her fool you, our parents are old friends."

This was sort of true. Will Silverman was a son of Hermes. Like Tyler he was a senior, and we'd met a few times when we were younger at Camp HalfBlood but he'd never really seemed that interested in me until his Mom and his new Step-Dad moved in to the apartment next to ours and we started going to the same school. Ever since then he'd taken it upon himself to be something like the big brother I'd never wanted, trying to force me to go to school and keep me out of trouble. It was infuriating.

"Just because they're friends doesn't mean we are." I said angrily. "Go away Will."

"So you can hang around with creeps like him?" Will asked. "I don't think so."

"Whatever dude." Tyler said coolly. "I'll see you around Parker." He said then after glancing at Will with obvious distaste added. "Or not."

"Tyler wait-" I started but he cut me off.

"Look kid you're cool," he said to me. "But I don't deal with drama. Ditch your boyfriend here and we'll talk."

He turned, walked down the hall, and I glared at Will.

"What is wrong with you?" I asked furiously. "Why can't you leave me alone?"

"Because in the two seconds I had my back turned, you got yourself arrested."

"I don't see how that's any of your business." I said in irritation.

"I'm guessing Tyler had something to do with it."

"No." I spat. "And thanks to you, he's probably never speaking to me again."

"Yeah because that would be the worst thing to ever happen to you." He said darkly again crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at me in disapproval.

"Like you'd know."

"Actually I would." He said annoyed. "More than you think."

There was a moment of silence.

He sighed and let his hands fall. "You know you're very difficult."

"No one said you had to deal with me."

"Why do you hang out with that guy? He doesn't care about you."

"Again that's none of your business." I said bitterly.

"He's not good for you." He said frowning.

"Why do you care?"

He didn't answer.

"Just leave me alone." I said annoyed and starting to walk down the hall. Will followed.

"You know only keeps you around cuz his friends think you're hot right?"

"So?"

"And you can get stuff for them."

"That's my problem to worry about, not yours."

"So you admit it," he asked falling into step next to me. "Even you know he doesn't care about you."

"What part of go away don't you understand?"

"Nothing."

"Clearly it's something because you're not-"

"I understand you Cali," he said rolling his eyes. "I'm just choosing ignoring you."

"Why?" I asked furiously.

"Because you could do better than him."

"What like you?" I asked sarcastically but I immediately regretted this outburst when I caught his expression.

"Don't flatter yourself Parker." He said looking irritated. "You're far too much of a pain in my ass to date."

"Then leave me alone."

"Can't do that." He said cryptically.

"Why?" I asked furiously.

As usual when confronted with this question he didn't answer. He simply put his hands in his pockets and we continued to walk. He smiled at a few girls who called out to him as we progressed down the hall and high fived his teammates as they passed.

This annoyed me.

Despite my personal opinion of him, Will happened to be very popular. I guess placing first in nationals for track two years in a row got you some sort of recognition or something. It didn't hurt that he was attractive either. I'd never really noticed before but I guess he was sort of handsome. I could see why some girls might find him appealing. Still… he was so annoying that it was cancelled out.

Any time he caught me doing anything that could be considered even remotely risky or dangerous, he put a stop to it. He was constantly bugging me to do my homework, study for tests and forced me to come to school whenever he could no matter how much I hated it. If I was honest with myself, he was the only reason I was passing this semester, but he was such a goody two shoes I couldn't appreciate it. Everything was so easy for him, like me he had ADHD and was Dyslexic, but you'd never know it. He still got good grades, got along with his mom and his step dad, and he never got into trouble. Trouble is all I'd ever been good for.

He was perfect, a golden boy, and I hated him for it.

"You know you've got to stop hanging out with that guy." Will said apparently unable to keep his mouth shut for longer than two seconds.

"I haven't got to do anything." I said glaring at him.

"This isn't just about you you know." He said. "What about Max?"

I stopped and turned to glare at him.

"Leave him out of this." I said furiously.

"I won't." Will said sounding just as angry now. "He was so upset when he heard what happened to you, he lost his race."

Max was on the track team with Will and with Will's help, he'd made the varsity squad as a freshman and subsequently, Max had made Will his hero. But Max didn't like Will just because of the help he gave him in track. He liked the fact that Will was trying to look out for me and it was this that made me hate Will so much. My own brother liked him more than me.

"The things you do affect him." Will said continuing his lecture. "It's not just your life you're screwing with. When was the last time you even saw him outside of school?"

I pretended not to hear him.

"Doesn't it bother you that I talk to your brother more than you do?"

This I couldn't ignore.

"What do you want from me?" I asked bitterly turning to face him. "Why are you constantly butting into my life? What good could it possibly do you?"

"I'm just looking out for you."

"Why?" I snapped.

"Is it so hard to believe that I care about what happens to you?" he asked.

"Yes."

He sighed again and this time didn't make eye contact and I noticed him absent mindedly playing with the bronze ring he always wore on his left ring finger. It had been a gift from his father, like my daggers it was weapon in disguise and had the ability to turn into a sword.

"Look Cali, someone has to look out for you, even if you won't." he said then glanced back at me.

"Go to hell."

"Now we both know that doesn't exist." He said with a slight smile. "And I've no intention of going to Hades either. With you running off as often as you do I don't exactly have time for it."

The bell rang, signaling that we had five minutes before school started.

"Well." Will said giving me a significant look. "What are you going to do Cali? Walk to first period or make me drag you?"

"I hope you get shin splints." I said darkly, but turned and started walking to Bio.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: This story is based in the world invented by Rick Riordan with a mix of original and cannon characters. All credit of the Percy Jackson series and it's characters to Rick Riordan. Hope you enjoy!

Wpov

I watched Cali walk away with mixed emotions until she turned a corner and vanished.

Why did she have to make things so difficult for me? And her. Sometimes I wondered if she wanted to get into trouble, but then I remembered how she'd looked when she admitted her brother wasn't speaking to her, when she was talking to Tyler and before she'd realized I was there. She was really upset.

I sighed and started walking towards my first class of the day.

I'd been looking out for Cali for almost three years now, and if someone had told me how much trouble she'd caused I wouldn't have believed them. How could someone so tiny do so much damage? But that seemed to be a theme with Cali. She was full of surprises.

I still remembered the day I'd met her like it was yesterday.

My mother and I had just finished moving in the last of our stuff into our new apartment while my new stepfather Dave, who was a professor, was at work lecturing for a summer course at his university.

I'd run into her in the hallway, and of course I knew who she was. Everyone at camp knew about the legendary Callista Parker, but never having spoken to her in person, I didn't know what to expect. Whatever I had been expecting however, was certainly not what I found.

" _Hi."_

 _She jumped in surprise then turned with a reflex so fast, I knew there was no doubt she was the girl I was looking for. This girl was a demigod and by her body language I could tell she was preparing a fight._

" _Whoa, calm down." I said putting my hands in the air and giving her an appeasing smile I could tell she didn't trust for a second. She looked me warily up and down, obviously trying to determine weather or not I was a monster in disguise._

" _I'm not going to attack you." I said trying to make it sounds like a joke but she didn't smile. She was still glaring at me, trying to determine if I was a threat._

" _My name is Will." I continued in her continued silence. "I just moved in next door."_

" _Congratulations." She said sarcastically and I knew she well was aware that I wanted something from her._

" _I was hoping you might be able to show me around."_

" _Yeah, that's not going to happen." She said sounding a little annoyed and turning to walk to the elevators._

 _Her attitude not completely unexpected, I followed her._

" _Look I know what you're thinking." I said catching up to her._

" _I doubt that." She said darkly._

" _You're a beautiful girl and every guy you meet wants to hit on you."_

" _Go away."_

" _But I don't want to sleep with you."_

" _Right." She said stiffly._

" _I'm serious." I said putting a hand on her shoulder._

" _Don't touch me!"_

 _She moved so quickly, a mortal would have been knocked flat on their feet, but being half god myself, I easily caught her arm before she'd been able to make contact._

 _This surprised her. From her expression I could tell she wasn't used to losing the advantage in a fight, even with a much bigger opponent._

" _Don't you think that's a bit of an over reaction?" I asked but she didn't look embarrassed. If anything, she looked more upset._

" _What are you?" she asked suspiciously, pulling herself out of my grip and stepping back while her eyes narrowed._

 _From this I could tell that she was back to thinking I could have been some sort of monster and I inwardly cursed my reflexes. I should have let her hit me, it would have been less suspicious._

" _I don't know what you're talking about." I said trying to sound confused as opposed to worried. This was not how I pictured this going at all. Cali was not what I expected. "I just thought it would be nice to get to know each other, we go to the same school, I thought you might be able to show me around. That's all."_

 _My excuse was pathetic enough that she lowered her guard, now she just looked annoyed. Great, now she thought I had an IQ lower than the average monster._

" _I'm not exactly the best person to ask about that."_

" _Bad experience?" I asked finally wondering if I might find something on which we could relate._

" _I've got better things to do than sit in a classroom for seven hours." She said turning to walk back down the hall. "If you want a baby sitter go find someone else and leave me alone."_

" _What's your problem?" I asked her, anger getting the better of me and she stopped._

" _I'm not the kind of person you want to get to know." She said flatly looking back at me._

" _That seems a bit hard on yourself."_

" _Trust me." She said shaking her head. "Your life would be much better without me in it."_

" _That quite an opinion."_

" _It's a fact." She said then continued to walk towards the elevators. "Stay away from me. You'll regret it if you don't."_

She was right of course. With all the trouble she got into, my life would have been much easier without Cali in it, but at this point I really didn't have a choice. I was stuck with her.

Still, something about what she'd said was odd to me, and even to this day three years later I'd never quite figured it out. At the time, Cali had no idea of my intentions to help her. So why was she so adamant about keeping me out of her life? It didn't make sense. It was obvious by her connection to her brother and Tyler that she was willing to make room in her life for people she cared about, so, why did she try so hard to push people away?

"Hey man."

I blinked and was returned to the present to see my best friend and teammate Chris Evans walking up to me.

"Hey."

He was a mortal, a few inches shorter than me with shaggy blonde hair and light blue eyes that were looking at me in concern.

"Is it true?" he asked.

"Is what true?" I asked falling into step next to him as we started walking towards Advanced P.E.

"What they're saying about Cali?"

All of my friends knew that I tried to keep an eye out for her, but they didn't like to talk about it. They all thought she was no good for me, but Chris was the only one that seemed to accept it. He wasn't friends with her, but he knew she was important to me, even if he didn't know why.

"Yeah." I said with a sigh and running my hand through my hair. "She was arrested."

"For trying to steal a car right?"

"Something like that."

"What do you mean 'Something like that?'" He asked frowning. "I would think an accusation like that is pretty clear."

I didn't answer at first because I didn't know how to put what I wanted to say into words, but I knew Cali. Well, as much as anyone could really. She might be a bit rough around the edges but car stealing just didn't seem like something she'd do.

"I just think there's more to it then what people are saying."

"So you believe the tire iron story?"

"Anything's possible." I said and while I could tell he didn't believe me, he kept quiet.

"Well at least it's just probation." He said. "Max isn't going to be happy."

"I bet you're right about that."

"Think he'll be at practice?" He asked as we made it to the locker rooms and we started to change.

"He wouldn't skip." I said. Max was the complete opposite of his sister. He did well in school, always went to class, and was generally well-adjusted teenager. "He knows if he doesn't he can't run in the meet."

"Speak of the devil." Chris said as Max, who also had P.E. first block but in a lower year, passed us on his way gym.

"Hey, Parker!" Someone shouted and he looked up to see a couple of Juniors walking towards him.

"What?" he asked uneasily. Both of the boys were older and a lot bigger than he was.

"Is it true your basket case of a sister got locked up?"

"Shut up." he spat bitterly trying to walk out the door but one of them grabbed his shoulders.

"Now that's not very nice." The biggest of two said in a mock polite tone. "We were just asking."

"It's none of your business."

"Yeah, well, we're making it our business." Said the second one cruelly. "And if your sister's half as crazy they say she is, I bet she's really good in bed. You wanna give me her number?"

"Go to hell." Max said furiously.

"What did you say twerp?" Said the first one but before things could escalate any further Chris and I had stepped into the mix and separated them.

"Leave him alone." I said glaring at the big one and remembering vaguely that his name was Chad.

"Well if it isn't Cali's lap dog." He said with a sneer.

"You want to say that again?" Chris asked through gritted teeth.

"Just leave it." I said glancing at Chris. "It's not worth it." I looked back at Chad. "Why don't you and your friend clear out? Leave Max alone about his sister."

"Yeah you'd like that wouldn't you?" he said with a humorless laugh. "Everyone knows you're in love with her."

"Let's just go Chad." His friend said. Apparently he was not as brave now that the freshman was no longer on his own.

"Fine." But he glared at Max. "You're lucky Silverman was here Parker." Then glowered at me. "Tell your sister to keep a tighter leash on her mutt."

The boys left and I turned back to Max while Chris continued to change.

"You ok?"

"I hate it when they talk about her like that." He said his fingers clenched into fists. "Why do they have to be such jerks?"

"Because they're idiots." I said shrugging. "Just ignore them."

"I can't." he said bitterly. "I can't let them say that stuff about her." He looked up at me. "Doesn't it bother you?"

I hesitated, wondering how honest I should be.

"Yeah." I said eventually. "It does."

"I wish I was as big as you," he muttered. "Then I could beat them up."

I couldn't help but smile at this. "Cali could do that on her own. She doesn't need your help."

"Yeah, I know." He said with a slight grin, but it quickly faded. "Still…"

"I know what you mean, but Cali can take care of herself." I assured him.

"Yeah, she's doing such a good job." He spat and when I raised an eyebrow he seemed to regret it. "I just hate it when they talk about her like that." He said angrily. "Why couldn't she just get a boyfriend like a normal girl? Then they'd all just shut up."

"Your sister's not exactly normal Max." I said and when he didn't look any happier I continued. "Give her a break. She's doing the best she can."

He let out a disbelieving noise. "Yeah right."

I looked down at him.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"If she was really doing her best you'd think she'd manage to stay out of trouble for more than a week." He said bitterly. "You know, if she really cared about seeing me at all."

"You're the only one she cares about." I said and he frowned, but I could tell he liked hearing it. "And your sister isn't really the relationship kind of person."

"I never understood why."

"You can blame her mom for that."

"Yeah if I knew who her mom was." He said bitterly. "She never talks about her. Whenever someone asks she just gets really angry." But his features turned curious. "Did you know her?"

"Not really." I said honestly. The few times Aphrodite had appeared to me our conversations hadn't lasted long. "But she knew my dad, and trust me. If she were your mom, you wouldn't trust relationships either. Not to mention how bad things are between her and your dad… If it weren't for you, she probably would have left years ago."

He sighed.

"Why doesn't she just date you?" he asked wistfully. "You're actually cool. Unlike that loser she hangs out with."

"Your sister and I don't have that sort of relationship."

"Why not?"

"It's complicated."

"Don't you like her?" he asked.

I hesitated, unsure how to answer this question without completely telling a lie.

"Again, complicated."

"So you do like her?"

"Why is this so important to you?" I asked him raising an eyebrow.

"You're the only one who hasn't given up on her." He muttered as if unsure he wanted to talk about this with me or not. "That should mean something shouldn't it?"

I didn't answer.

"Why are you so nice to her?" he pressed. "She's not a very nice person, especially to you."

"Do I need to have a reason?" I asked.

"Why would you if you didn't?"

"Fair point."

"Well what is it?"

Luckily, at that point I was literally saved by the bell as the signal for the start of class rang throughout the school.

"We should get to class." I said shaking my head.

"So you're not going to tell me?"

I chuckled.

"You wouldn't believe me if I did."

"Try me." He challenged.

"Trust me you don't want to know, in fact it's better if you don't."

"God you're just like her." He complained. "You guys never tell me anything."

"Just go." I said rolling my eyes.

He scowled at me but walked out of the locker room in the direction of the gym.

I stood there for a second thinking and Max's voice ran though my head.

'You're just like her'

"You've no idea." I said shaking my head then following him out of the locker room.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: This story is based in the world invented by Rick Riordan with a mix of original and cannon characters. All credit of the Percy Jackson series and it's characters to Rick Riordan. Hope you enjoy!

Cpov

'Who does he think he is?'

The question burned through me all through out biology where unfortunately my mind seemed to be stuck on Will.

Why was he so nosey?

Why was he always trying to protect me?

Why wouldn't he just leave me alone?

I was left with these thoughts to circle in my mind until the bell rang and I walked through the halls keeping my head low, trying to ignore the whispers that followed me as I passed. Even the teachers seemed caught up in it.

"Is that her?"

"Yeah."

"She's a total freak."

"I heard she lost it and tried to steal a car."

"Is it true she's been expelled from like three schools?"

"What a psychopath…"

I pushed my way through the hordes of students that were crowding the hallways and took a staircase that lead me not to my next class, but the lighting booth in the auditorium. It was almost always unlocked and teachers rarely thought to check for missing students there, maybe that's why I liked it so much. Possibly I thought if I hung out up here enough, people would forget about me too.

I saw the narrow door that lead to the booth, and after a quick glance around me to see that no one was watching, I slipped into a dark narrow hall that almost immediately turned into a narrow staircase.

I jogged up the steps, somehow managing not to trip in the darkness and made my way to one of the worn armchairs some of the drama kids had dragged up here. I took of my jacket, tossed it onto the chair, and just as I was about to sit down, there was a soft 'click' and the room flooded with light.

I turned reaching for my daggers thinking of monsters, when I heard an amused laugh.

"Always think something's after you, don't you Parker?"

My heart pounding, I looked around to see that I wasn't the only one in the booth. Between the many desks, mismatched chairs, lighting boards, and various other costumes and props the drama department had stored, there were several people up here. They were all Tyler's friends. He was the one that had spoken.

"If I didn't know better," he said with a grin. "I'd think you were scared of the dark."

"I told you man," one of his friends, a big kid with a shaved head and cruel dark eyes said with a smirk. "She's paranoid. Anyone else see the knife?"

His name was Austin Harrow and he was looking at my hand, the one where I'd managed to get a hold of one of my daggers. The others, including two boys both smaller and skinnier than Tyler but with similar dark hair, and a girl with bleached blonde hair and blue eyes that were obviously colored contacts glanced at them as well. Her make up was too much, and her clothes were too tight, but I wasn't surprised Tyler had brought her. He'd always gone for the girls who tried too hard. He seemed to think they were easy.

"She's not going to hurt anyone." Tyler said pleasantly. "Are you love?"

"Don't call me that." I said irritated, putting my dagger in my belt and noticing the girl giving me a sour look. She seemed to debate something for a moment then stood up and crossed the room to sit in his lap.

He smirked.

"Cali, you remember Austin, and the Romero brothers Victor and Edmund?"

"Yeah." I said as each boy nodded as his name was said.

"And this." He said running his hand up the girl's leg. "Is Abby." She gave me a superior sort of look as she slid her arms around his neck, but I really could not have cared less. He would be done with her in a week. It was his pattern, with girls like her he always got bored.

"Nice bruise you got there." He continued his smirk growing as he nodded towards my arm where there was a dark purple shadow around my wrist. "Present from your Dad?"

"Shut up asshole." I said grabbing my jacket and putting it back on.

"I'll take that as a yes." He said knowingly. "We were just about to partake in a little recreational activity if you wanted to join us."

He nodded towards Austin who pulled a bag of what was obviously weed out of his jacket pocket as the Romero brothers started pulling out rolling papers.

"I'm good." I said automatically.

"Scared?" the girl asked nastily and I raised an eyebrow. Her bravado vanished instantly.

Tyler laughed.

"Trust me babe," he said amused. "You don't want to piss Cali off. She might be little but she could kick your ass."

I didn't respond to this, but watched as they set up to smoke.

The truth was, I wasn't scared of getting caught. The teachers here were easy enough to manipulate. The fact was that drugs and demigods just didn't mix. Our brains were already chaotic enough with the mortal and godly sides fighting it out all the time, I didn't need drugs entering the mix.

"So how come you don't smoke?" Austin asked sitting on the arm of my chair and absolutely reeking of weed. "How many times have you convinced people to give us booze and drugs for free? Yet you never use any of it."

I didn't answer.

"Come on beautiful." He said and I saw Tyler look annoyed. "You can talk to me. I don't bite."

He attempted to put his arm around my shoulder but I ducked and he lost his balance and toppled onto the floor.

"Don't touch me." I said shortly.

"What the hell bitch?" he said getting to his feet and lunging towards me.

I took a stance ready to fight, but before things could escalate Tyler stepped in.

"Shut up Austin," he said pushing the Abby off him and stepping between us.

"Tyler!" the Abby said indignantly from the floor but he ignored her.

"Go sit down." He said glaring at Austin.

"Why are you protecting her?" Austin shouted furiously while glaring at me. "She's always acting like she's better than us."

"Go. Sit. Down." He repeated.

There was a tense moment where nobody spoke as we all looked between Austin and Tyler. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Austin backed down.

"Whatever." He said moodily and went to sit back on the armchair next to Victor crossing his arms over his chest.

Tyler went back to his seat with Abby, who retook her place on his lap and his smirk returned.

"But to answer your question Austin. There is a reason she doesn't drink or use, isn't there Parker."

"Shove off Tyler." I said irritated. I knew what he was thinking.

"What is it?" Abby asked obviously enjoying my discomfort.

"Let's just say Parker here has some issues with Daddy. Especially when he drinks."

High, and probably a little relieved the tension had passed, the Romero brothers burst into laughter while Austin and Abby also smirked.

"I'll see you around." I said annoyed.

"Oh come on." Tyler said in a babying tone while the others jeered. "I was only joking."

"Have fun with your slut." I said angrily making my way towards the stares.

"What did you just call me?" Abby screeched but I took out one of my daggers and casually flipped in in my palm. Their laughter died.

I made my way back into the main hall of the building and just as I was debating if I should leave or show up late to class, I heard a familiar voice.

"Cali?"

I turned to see Max stepping into the hall.

"Hey." I said in surprise. "I thought you were mad at me."

"I was." He said frowning. "And I still kind of am. But I talked to Will, he made me feel better about it."

I felt a twinge of annoyance. Of course he hand.

"What are you doing out of class?" I asked frowning. It wasn't like him to miss any class, not even study hall.

"I had to go to the bathroom," he said gesturing towards the sign next to the door he'd just exited and I noticed a hall pass in his hand. "I could as you the same thing."

I let out a humorless laugh and he scowled.

"Why do you bother coming to school if you're just going to skip all your classes?" he asked annoyed.

"I thought that was obvious." I said frowning.

"No." He said looking irritated even further.

"I get to see you."

His expression softened.

"Well," he said suddenly unable to meet my gaze. "I'd better get back, otherwise my Mrs. Waters is going to wonder why I'm taking so long."

"Alright."

"I'll see you around Cal."

"See you."

He hesitated for a moment, but then turned and walked down the hall to his class. I watched him go before noticing an administrator approaching from the other end of the hall.

"Excuse me but where is your hall-"

I turned to see it was one of the vice principals, Mr. Green. He was a tall black man with a shaved head and a no nonsense attitude.

"Miss Parker." He said cutting himself off. "Wandering the halls again I see."

"During class is the best time to do it." I said sarcastically. "It's nice to be alone with my thoughts, I really think it helps me find myself."

"Well find yourself all the way back to algebra." He said. He'd pulled me out of and sent me back to so many classes he'd memorized my schedule.

"No thanks." I said shrugging.

"Fine. Then we'll go to the office."

"I don't feel like doing that either."

"Too bad," he growled. "Let's go Cali."

I smiled and he frowned.

"Don't try and talk your way out of this Cali." He said reaching towards me. "You're coming with me."

"You don't really want to get me in trouble Mr. Green." I said sweetly and he froze in his tracks. "You have better things to do than deal with me, don't you?"

He hesitated, not looking entirely convinced. I decided to lay on the charm thicker.

"You know deep down I'm not a bad kid. I just don't have anyone looking out for me. You should just let me go. Just this once."

"Just this once?" He repeated sounding confused, but he lowered his arm and gave me a dazed look. He blinked and shook his head. "Alright fine Cali. Just this once. I've got more important things to do than follow you around the school making sure you go to your classes."

I smiled.

"Don't let it happen again."

"Ok Mr. Green."

We both turned and walked in opposite directions down the hall.

"That's what you said last week." I said and smirking to myself, I went to find a new place to hang out until lunch


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: This story is based in the world invented by Rick Riordan with a mix of original and cannon characters. All credit of the Percy Jackson series and it's characters to Rick Riordan. Hope you enjoy!

Wpov

"She's here?"

"Yeah over there. By the bleachers."

"God she's hot."

"Don't bother guys, she won't talk to you."

"So I take it Cali's watching practice?" I asked stepping out of the locker room and noticing a cluster of boys talking together while facing the bleachers on the other side of the fence from the track. The group was made mostly of sophomores and freshman who still weren't used to her presence at track events, but there was still the occasional upperclassman who still felt it necessary to gawk at her.

"How could you tell?" Chris said rolling his eyes.

"I guess she and Max made up then." I said nodding towards the part of the fence where they were speaking to each other from opposite sides.

"Looks like it. How long do you think it will last this time?"

"Who knows." I said shrugging. Max was always irritated at Cali about something, but I mean, who could blame him. She was a difficult person to live with, Gods knew I knew that from personal experience. "They're bound to be arguing about something eventually."

"And when they do you'll be right there to sort it out."

"Basically." I said as we each grabbed a set of hurdles and started setting them up on the track.

"I don't know why you do it man." He said shaking his head as he helped me set up the equipment for practice. "Seems like a lot of work for zero reward. But I guess by now I should know better than to ask."

"Yeah probably."

He grinned and we continued to set up the track.

Practice went by pretty normally. Only two people managed to hurt themselves jumping over the hurdles and our coach was almost hit by one of the field throwers, all and all, a pretty good practice. It wasn't until after it had ended that things got eventful.

I was just helping the coach put away the last of the equipment when I heard a furious voice shout.

"I don't care if it's an open practice! I don't want her near my son!"

Everyone looked up to see a tall woman with dark brown hair and furious eyes shouting at our assistant couch. He was standing between the women and Cali who looked ready for a fight.

I swore.

"Uh oh." Chris muttered and I took off jogging in their direction.

"Mom, relax, it's not a big deal." Max said clearly embarrassed now that everyone was looking at them.

"No Max. It is a big deal. She's a bad influenced and I don't want you around her."

"But Mom she's-"

"Get in the car!"

"No!"

"NOW!"

Max hesitated, looking as if he wanted to argue, but eventually relented.

"I'll see you around Cali." He muttered dejectedly and started walking to the parking lot.

"Joanne, I'm sorry but there's really nothing I can do." The coach said uneasily. "Cali has every right to be here if she wants. Anyone can watch."

"But-"

"I'm sorry Miss Godwin." I said vaulting the fence and landing right in the middle of the argument. "It's my fault Cali's here."

"What?" she asked.

"Yeah, what?" Cali said raising an eyebrow, but I shot her a look and for once she kept her mouth shut. Luckily, Max's mother didn't seem to hear.

"Yeah I asked her to come to practice today so we could walk home together. I'm helping her study for a test she has tomorrow."

"Oh." She said looked a little shocked and considerably less angry. Max's mother loved me. She knew about all the help I gave Max during practices and that I kept bullies away from him during school. "Well that's very nice of you Will, and I trust you. But you know Cali, I'm sure you understand my concerns…"

"I do." I said.

"Excuse me?" Cali said furiously.

I ignored her.

"Don't worry about Cali coming to practice. I'll keep an eye on her."

"Who do you think-" she started but luckily Chris had caught up to us at this point. He grabbed Cali and dragged her away from the argument. Though she had the training and ability as a demigod to flatten Chris, she had the sense to let him pull her away.

"I'm not going to let anything happen to Max." I assured Ms. Godwin. "And if I think Cali's starting to become a problem. I'll keep her away from practices myself."

This last part was a lie. If there was ever a chance I could keep Cali near by and not have it look suspicious I was always going to take it, but she didn't know that and I knew she would believe me.

She frowned but after a minute said.

"Alright. But I'm keeping you to your word." She said pointing at me. "If I start hearing Max's grades are slipping, or he's skipping classes or practices."

"He won't." I said firmly. "Max is a good kid. He wouldn't."

She gave me one last suspicious look, but then turned and walked towards the parking lot where Max was waiting for her.

I breathed a sigh of relief along with our assistant coach who thanked me for stepping in, then started walking back to the track among whispers.

They didn't bother me much, I was used to people talking about my unnatural involvement in Cali's life but it didn't matter to me what they said. It didn't change the situation in the slightest so I didn't really care.

"Why do you always go butting in?"

I looked up to see Chris confused and on the floor and Cali storming towards me. Obviously, she'd waited until Max's mother hand left before getting out of Chris's grip and attacking me.

"You know you could thank me." I said irritated.

"I was handling it."

"Yeah. Sure." I said sarcastically very aware of the attention we were drawing. "I could see that considering the fact that you were two seconds away from Max's mother into putting a restraining order on you."

"That's none of your business."

"But I stopped it didn't I?"

She hesitated.

"I didn't need your help."

"Of course you didn't." I said rolling my eyes.

"I didn't!" she said annoyed. "Would you just butt out? Why do you care if I get to see Max or not? It has nothing to do with you!"

There was a silence and I realized everyone, even the coaches were looking at me now. I knew this would be the topic of discussion in the halls tomorrow. Everyone wanted to know why I put so much effort into trying to help Cali but I didn't say anything. What was I supposed to tell her? The truth? There was no way that would ever happen, it would have been less reckless to charge an angry bear.

"You're so annoying." she said angrily. "Leave me alone."

She stormed away from the track and I watched her go. People were whispering again but I ignored them. I made my way back to the coach who was looking at me uncertainly.

"What else do you want me to put away?" I asked calmly and his gaze was incredulous.

Twenty minutes later, I was the last one to enter the locker room to change before I went home. I'd stayed late to help our coach decide who should be running on varsity during our next meet, as team captain I was expected to do that sort of thing. What I didn't expect was when I walked into the first row of lockers to change, I found I wasn't alone.

"You're not supposed to be in here." I said rounding the corner to see an impossibly beautiful woman sitting regally on the benches as if it were a throne. I pointed to the sign that said, 'Boy's locker room.' "No girls allowed."

Her long hair fell to her waist in soft waves and her light eyes fixed me with a wrathful stare. It was one I recognized with eyes like Mediterranean… just like her daughter.

"Oh please, like it's anything I haven't seen before." She said rolling her eyes and gracefully taking a seat on one of the benches. Aphrodite took many forms, all with varying styles, but today she'd gone the hipster route. She looked to be about sixteen with a thin hippy style headband, square black rimmed glasses, an over sized sweater that exposed one shoulder, and ripped high waisted shorts.

"You and I have a problem." She said a steel edge in her tone as her eyes narrowed. She could have been Cali's twin.

"What?"

"We both know what." She growled.

I did know, but I didn't want to admit it. I didn't say anything and her eyes flashed.

"Shall I remind you?" she said acidly and in one fluid motion she raised her palm. There was a bright light and a scene appeared in front of me. Cali in the halls with Tyler's arm around her shoulder, the scene then switched to her arrest, then another night I didn't know about, where she was sneaking out of her window, climbing down the fire escape to meet…

"Tyler." She said as if reading my thoughts.

"What do you want me to do about it?" I asked playing for time.

"You were supposed to be watching her." She said and I felt the air thicken with power. "Keeping her away from…" her eyes narrowed as she watched scenes of her daughter and the low life she considered a friend. " _This_."

"How was I supposed to know?" I asked angrily. I couldn't be around Cali twenty four seven, it just wasn't possible.

"Because it's your job." She spat. "Or have you forgotten our arrangement?"

I winced.

"No."

"Then break it up."

"I can't."

"Why?"

"Because she doesn't listen to me!" I said in exasperation.

"And whose fault is that?" She said her voice callous.

"You know it's not as easy as you'd think." I said glaring at her. "Have YOU ever tried dealing with your daughter. She's a little stubborn," I said sarcastically. "I wonder where she gets it from."

She glowered at me.

"We had a deal."

"I'm aware of that." I said my tone much calmer than I felt.

"You were supposed to make sure that she-"

"I can't help it if she's gone off and gotten herself some scumbag boyfriend. I'm looking out for her but I can't do everything."

"You're not doing enough." She said furiously. "He's a bad influence."

"Yeah," I said jerkily. "I know that."

"Then do something about it."

"You don't think I'm trying? You're the one in charge of this stuff. If you hate him so much why don't you do it?" I asked bitterly.

"What they have is far from love." She said distastefully. "It doesn't cross into my domain."

"Well I don't know what you want me to do about it." I said incensed. She was a goddess after all. It wasn't my fault Cali was about as self destructive as a grenade. Aphrodite was the one who'd pulled the pin and thrown her at me. The girl had serious issues, not helped by an absent mother and a train wreck of a father. All I could do was prepare for and lessen the damage for the inevitable moment when she'd explode.

"I wanted you to protect her."

"Well she's making it damn near impossible!" I shouted. She was a disaster. She was constantly getting into trouble skipping class, refusing do work, defying authority figures, sneaking out, and intentionally seeking out the very worst crowd, then relying on her incredibly powerful charmspeak to get her out of whatever unfathomably stupid situation she'd managed to land herself in. Anyone who tried to help was pushed away, and anyone who could make her life even more chaotic was welcomed with open arms. At first it thought she'd wanted attention but that didn't seem right. She hated anyone getting involved, it was as if she didn't want people to care about her at all, and she got her wish. Eventually teachers, councilors, even her own father gave up. I was the only one left. Though, it wasn't as if I had a choice.

"That's not my problem." Aphrodite said coldly.

"You're her mother!"

"Which is why I've got you keeping an eye on her. Where do you think she would have been if I hadn't had you watching her every move since she was fourteen? But you're getting lazy. She's getting into more trouble now than ever all because you're not bothering to pay attention."

I glared at her.

"I don't know why you even want me to bother. She doesn't want to change and she can take care of herself."

"My reasons for wanting my daughter protected are my own and not to be questioned by a mortal." She said her voice raising dangerously as it echoed off the walls.

"I have a life you know. Other concerns."

"You gave away your rights to _other concerns_ when you agreed to trade your happiness for your mothers." She said standing and walking towards me getting taller with each step. "Remember? The man of her dreams falls hopelessly in love with her, takes her away from the projects and your past, in exchange, you protect my daughter."

"She doesn't need protecting."

"You don't know what my daughter needs."

"I know her better than you!" I said in frustration and I knew immediately I crossed the line.

She looked at me, and in that moment all I could feel was her cold fury. My heart pounded against my chest, pain erupted through it, pushed along by my heart that felt as if it wanted to rip itself apart. I fell to my knees.

She was towering over me now, at least seven feet tall and glowing. I knew she was tempted to assume her godly form.

"Don't you dare insult me with your arrogance Silverman." Her voice boomed bouncing off the walls making my ears pound as each word hit me like a blow to the head. "I will not permit you to think mortals could ever know more than the Gods let alone my own daughter."

The room was shaking now, her anger was taking over.

"Things with Callista have gotten out of control, this has gone far enough."

"It's not that simple." I said angrily while pushing myself to my feet. "She doesn't listen. What am I supposed to do? Tie her up?"

"I don't care what you have to do. You got yourself into this. It was your decision, now go and live with it." She said her eyes flashing. "Unless…"

The scene changed to my mother and my step father, at their wedding.

"It would be so awful if thing's in your mother's perfect marriage would start to fall apart. You know how easy it is these days to fall out of love…"

The picture started to fade.

"No!" I said quickly and she gave me a furious look.

"Then fix it." She said bitterly. "Or else."

I closed my eyes and turned away. There was a bright flash, and noise like a canon that filled the entire locker room, and she was gone.


	5. Chapter 5

Cpov

One thing that sucked about being the daughter of Aphrodite, was that you were very in tune with people who were in love. Or who thought they were anyways. Couples, friends who liked each other, or school girls with obsessive boy band crushes were my worst nightmare. I could be walking down the street or in a confined space and all of the sudden know all too much about their personal life, far more than I cared too. It was a nightmare.

I tended to drown it out with angry music and keeping my head down in public, but it was very hard when you were as attuned to it as I was and it was directly in front of you.

I walked into my apartment building only to be ambushed by a tall girl, with long blonde hair and light blue eyes.

"Oh hi Will I didn't think you'd be home so-" but she stopped her eyes focused on me. "Oh." She said moodily. "It's just you."

"Sorry to disappoint you Sadie." I said sarcastically. She was a private school girl who lived on the second floor and thoroughly disliked me. She was utterly obsessed with Will and resented the fact that he spent a lot of his time around me.

She'd developed a habit of hanging around in the lobby, waiting for him to get home after school, and pretending to have just gotten back as well giving her an excuse to invite him over to her place to do homework together. Everyone in the building knew she had a giant crush on him, well, everyone except Will.

"Where's Will?" she asked suspiciously, as if I'd done something to him.

"How should I know?"

"He's always with you." She said sulkily.

"Yeah I'm just as happy about that as you are." I said flatly. "But it's not my job to keep track of him. Why don't you just call him and ask?"

Her cheeks went red.

"I can't do that!" she spluttered. "It would be totally creepy!"

"And waiting around for him in the lobby for hours isn't?"

Her face flushed even more.

"Shut up Cali you're a freak, you don't know anything."

I felt a surge of anger go through me but I ignored it.

"Whatever." I said annoyed crossing the lobby, heading towards the elevator and pressing the up button. "Enjoy your stalking."

It was exactly that kind of crazy, idiotic, fake, obsessive delusion that made me hate my mother so much. That wasn't love. That was insane and that was all she did to people. She made them crazy and caused them pain. Well, I for one, wanted nothing to do with it.

I stepped into the elevator and pressed the number five. Just as the door was sliding shut I heard, "Oh, hi Will."

"Pathetic." I said in distaste. How could anyone allow themselves to be controlled by their emotions like that?

I remained lost in thought all the way up to the fifth floor and to my front door. The moment I stepped into the apartment however, I wanted to turn right back around and leave the building.

Once one of the most respected high fashion photographers in the world, my father now relied mainly on event photography and photo shoots for rich kids who's parents paid him to take professional photos of them, so they could pretend to be models. Personally, I blamed his downward spiral on my mother, a terrible price to pay for the mistake of falling in love, and I posed as a living reminder.

I could tell by the bottles on the table my father finished work and had been drinking, and from the shattered glass on the floor and several battered picture frames I knew exactly what would happen when he saw me.

I quickly turned to go back into the hall but it was too late.

"Aphrodite, you're a terrible woman!"

A mixture of fear and anger shot through me, and I ran for my room.

Luckily I was fast, much faster than a stumbling drunk. I managed to get to slam the door shut and turn the lock.

"Get out here!"

I didn't answer.

Suddenly, there was a smashing noise and I heard broken glass hit the floor. My father had thrown a bottle at the door.

I ran to my window and started attempting to open it as I heard my father slamming his shoulder against my door, but it wouldn't budge. I was trapped.

My mind raced. How long would he be at this? Would the door hold? How could I get out?

I'd just decided I'd break the glass of the window if I had to when there was a sharp cracking and splintering noise and my door was thrown off it's hinges.

"You bitch!"

"Dad, it's me." I said uncertain if he knew he was talking to. "Cali."

"I loved you." He said taking an unsteady step towards me. "I gave you my heart!" he shouted drunkenly, his words slurring. "And what did you give me? A kid! And not just a kid." He made a disgusted noise and took another swig from the nearly empty bottle of Vodka. "You gave me, a disaster. A useless disaster who loves to torment me."

I tried to get around him and go to my room but he blocked the hall.

"She could have easily been a model. She could have put me back on top but no. She decides to get arrested, and steal, and…" he seemed to loose his train of thought at this point.

"Get out of my way." I said annoyed but when I tried to go through the door, there was an explosion of glass on the wall not half a foot from my head and I realize he'd thrown the vodka bottle at me. "What the hell is wrong with you, you psychopath!" I shouted at him but he was either to drunk to even realize what he did or he didn't care.

"You're a god." He said. "Fix it!"

"Dad it's me!" I shouted. "Your daughter!"

"Disaster." He muttered again. "If you could just-"

"She's not coming back!" I yelled.

"But you're here."

"I am Cali!"

"You're lying!" he shouted and grabbed another bottle off the table and threw that one too. This one was on target and I had to duck to avoid it. The next thing I knew my father was right in front of me.

"Aphrodite you're a terrible woman." He said grabbing my arm and dragging me towards the living room.

"Get off of me!" I shouted struggling, trying to break free.

"No." he spat with venom. "You're not leaving me again!"

At this point, instinct from Camp Half Blood took over and I punched my father, easily managing to break his grip when he was distracted and start running for the door.

"No you don't!" He shouted charging after me. "You're not getting away again!"

He pushed me down as I threw my arm out to break my fall, I felt a searing pain. He'd thrown me straight on top of the glass shards of one of the broken bottles.

"You," he said darkly but I'd had enough.

As I picked myself up, I drew my daggers from my belt and held it, ready to strike.

"You wouldn't do it." He said swaying drunkenly on the spot.

"Try me." I said furious, my arm throbbing with pain as I felt hot blood trickling from the cuts. The daggers of course were celestial bronze and couldn't hurt mortals but he didn't know that. "Get a grip." I spat coldly. "She's never coming back. And you can drink yourself to death or get over it. Either way, she won't care."

"You're lying!" he shouted and began to run at me. I sprinted for the door and made it into the hallway only to collide with a very tall, very solid figure that was headed towards the door next to mine.

"Cali?" It was Will. His track bag was hanging off his shoulder, and he looked confused. Clearly he'd just gotten back from practice. "Cali, are you alright? I thought I heard…are you bleeding?"

But before another word could be said my father had made it into the hall.

"Get back here!" he almost screamed as he charged. But I wasn't the only one who'd remembered a few things from battle training.

Will moved so fast I could barely see it. In one motion he'd pulled me behind him, and in the next, slammed his fist into my father's jaw. I watched as my father fell to the floor, his body limp, knocked out cold.

Will looked confused for a second, then back at me.

"What happened? Why was he-?" he started then he spotted my arm. "Let me see that." He said reaching for it.

"No." I said backing away panic flooding through me, fogging my brain. I wasn't able to think.

"Cali," he said calmly. "I think you need to go to the hospital."

"No!" this time it was a shout.

"I'm just trying to help."

"I don't need your help." I said angrily. He couldn't understand, no one could. "I don't need anyone."

"So you're just going to let yourself bleed out?" he asked and for the first time, Will looked angry.

"Just leave me alone!"

I turned and stormed down the hall half expecting him to follow me. But he didn't.

Good. I didn't want him getting in the middle of this. Like he always got in the middle of everything. Why did he care what happened to me when my own parents didn't give a shit? Nothing he did made sense. What was his deal?

I heard my phone buzz and looked down to see a text from Tyler

'Meet at school in 20.'

I didn't know what Tyler wanted, or why I had to be there so soon, but I didn't care. I responded immediately telling him I would meet him. It didn't matter where he wanted to go or what he wanted to do. Anywhere was better than here.


	6. Chapter 6

Wpov

I knew better than to go after Cali when she was like this. No doubt she was running off to Tyler who would just enable her destructive personality. If I followed her now, she'd just work even harder to do something reckless just to spite me.

Automatically, I brushed the ring on my finger. Well, if anything bad happened I would know. So I pushed my apartment door open and walked into the kitchen to see Dave Cole, my stepfather attempting to save a charred freezer pizza with no success.

"Maybe we should just order take out." He said sheepishly while looking down at the pizza and adjusting his glasses.

"I'm good with anything." I said trying not to laugh at the blackened pepperonis. While he might have been a terrible cook, I'd pretty much scored the jack pot of step fathers when it came to Dave. He was a short man, barely an inch taller than my mother, with light brown hair and hazel eyes hidden behind rectangular glasses, but what he lacked in height he made up for in brains. It was no shock he'd become a professor, the guy was a genius and an excellent teacher. He'd managed to help me study and keep up in classes despite my ADHD and Dyslexia and thanks to him I was graduating with honors, which I'd thought was impossible after my freshman year. But this wasn't the only thing I liked about him. He'd taken me in and treated me like I was his own son, despite everything he knew about me. Admittedly, he didn't know my father was a god, but there was only so much a man could take.

"How was school?" he asked trashing the unfortunate pizza and going through a drawer full of take out menus.

"Physics is the bane of my existence." I said scowling and opening the fridge to look for a soda. "I was asked to read out loud today."

"How did that go?" he asked frowning.

"Do you know how similar angle of incidence looks to angel of indecencies looks when you're dyslexic?"

"Well was practice better?"

"Yeah it was good. Max got moved up to an alternate for varsity for our next meet."

"That's great." He said but hesitated before saying. "How's his sister?"

"About the same as usual." I said.

"Is it true she was arrested?" he asked frowning. Unlike my mother, who supported my "decision" to try and keep Cali out of trouble, Dave took the much more likely assumption that she was beyond saving. He thought she was a bad influence and didn't like me to be around her much, thought it might bring back old habits…

"Yeah but she wasn't charged with anything." I said awkwardly.

"Well that hardly matters does it…" he muttered.

"People can change." I said.

"Some people can change." He said giving me a significant look. "I know your mother thinks everyone can be like you Will and I know you want to help this girl before she goes too far down that same path you did, but I think it's clear by now that she doesn't want to be helped."

There was an uncomfortable silence, but it was quickly interrupted when the door opened again and I heard my mother walk in.

"Is something burning?" she asked walking into the kitchen. Her long blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her warm brown eyes were concerned.

"Dave was trying to cook." I said smirking.

"Don't worry though. I've got the take out number right here." He said waving the Chinese food pamphlet. She laughed, gave him a kiss, then looked at me.

"How was your day?" she asked.

"Fine." I said deciding not to mention what happened in the locker room with Aphrodite. My mother didn't know about my deal with the Goddess and I figured it was probably better to keep it that way.

It took about an hour before we all finally sat down and ate dinner. In that time Dave had started to help me with college applications.

"Oh that reminds me!" my mother said excitedly dashing back into the kitchen and grabbing her purse. "This came for you today."

She handed me a torn envelope with a familiar insignia printed onto the front.

"If this is for me." I said suspiciously. "Why is it already open?"

"I couldn't contain myself." She said excitedly while tapping the paper excitedly with her index finger. "Look what it says!"

I scanned the letter quickly causing me to misread several of the words, but I got the gist of it. It was a letter from the head coach of track and field at my mother's old school Prestion University offering me a full scholarship if I got in and ran for their track team.

"Is this for real?" I asked looking at her in shock.

"Yes!" she squealed excitedly and then tackled me into a hug. "Isn't this amazing?" she asked her eyes starting to water.

I knew how much this meant to her. My mother had gotten pregnant with me in her junior year and had to drop out of school to raise me on her own. She'd also ran track and might have been on the Olympic path if she hadn't met my father. Being a single mother, I knew she'd always worried about sending me to college, especially a few years ago she thought I might not even get in, but Dave had changed much of that. Even after him though, she'd been worried that I might have to wait a few years while they could save up a little, so to her this was a dream come true.

"Oh it'll be perfect." She said letting go and beaming at me. "I wondered after you won nationals twice if this might happen but I didn't want to get my hopes up. You'll have such a great time. You'll even have my old coach. You'll-" but she stopped short when she caught my expression. "What's wrong?" she asked frowning.

"Nothing." I said quickly, but it was a lie.

"It's a lot to take in Karen." Dave said soothingly. "I'm sure he's just processing what's going on. You're excited, right Will?" he asked.

"Yeah." I said nodding and forcing myself to smile.

My mother beamed again and pulled me into a hug.

"I'm so proud of you." She said happily while Dave clapped me on the shoulder and said, "we both are."

I smiled again and while they suggested we go out somewhere to celebrate I lied and said I was worried about my meet tomorrow and wanted to go to bed early.

"Alright." My mother said her eyes still shining with glee. "We'll be there tomorrow. I'm running the snack counter, but I made sure that my shifts will be between your races."

"Alright thanks Mom." I said, but when I closed my bedroom door, the smile slid off my face as I stared at the envelope I was still holding.

I hadn't given much thought as to what I would do after high school. For the past two years my life had been about two things, track and Cali, the latter of which wasn't optional, but college had never been part of the plan.

How could I tell her that I couldn't go? Well, I couldn't say I couldn't, but I didn't want to. How disappointed would she be? We she even take no for an answer? And then, when I was out of school and Cali was old enough to drop out, which at this rate I was sure she would, how would I explain my involvement in her life then without her asking even more questions and my mother finding out about the agreement between Aphrodite and me? There was no way the goddess would let me out of the deal. When it came to her daughter, my life and my future were 'other concerns.'


	7. Chapter 7

Cpov

Clubs were kind of a demigod's worst nightmare. With our heightened senses, we noticed everything. The flashing colored lights and the pounding music were too much, and monsters could be anywhere in the crowd. With so much going on, it was impossible to think. But it was for that exact reason why I was here.

I winced. My arm still hurt from the fight with my father, but thanks to a little ambrosia it was pretty much healed.

I had no idea what time it was, I had no idea where Tyler or his friends had gotten to, but I didn't care. I simply let my brain switch off and let the lights and music wash over me.

Here I wasn't Cali the basket case, or Cali the failure of a sister. I was just another body in a crowd of people, in fact, I doubted any one here knew my name.

I watched as several couples passed me, grinning like idiots, or holding hands on their way to the dance floor. They were fools under my mother's spell. But I forced it from my mind. I was trying to forget about my mother and thinking about them would only make it worse.

"Hey baby."

I scowled as a man detangled himself from the mass of dancing bodies and slid into the seat next to mine, while putting his arm around my shoulder.

"What are you drinking?"

"Nothing." I said annoyed removing myself from his hold and standing up. He was tall and decent looking with dark hair and dark eyes, but was very obviously drunk. "Leave me alone dude."

"Aw c'mon babe," he said with a stupid smile. "Don't be like that."

He too stood and swayed.

"Get lost."

"Oh I see." He said swaying again. "You think you're too hot to dance with me."

I didn't answer, only tried to walk away but he grabbed my wrist.

"Let go of me."

"Listen missy." He slurred and under the lights his body seemed to shimmer. "You may be hot, but that doesn't mean you get to act like a bitch."

At this point I'd had enough. I'd been trained to fight monsters, one drunk guy was no problem for me. I twisted out of the man's grip and forced him back.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Get back here! You can't get away from me!"

But I'd already pushed through the crowd.

I decided to find Tyler. I wasn't having fun and I wanted to leave.

It didn't take long to spot him, or the new blonde girl he was making out with.

"Tyler." I said annoyed but he ignored me. "Tyler!"

"What?" he said angrily and the blonde glared at me.

"I'm bored."

"That's nice."

"I want to go."

"Can't you see I'm busy Parker?"

I glared at him.

"So you're just going to ditch me?"

His answer was to start kissing the blonde again.

"Fine." I said angrily then started walking towards the exit. I didn't know why I decided to come with him. He always did this.

I stepped out onto the street and shivered while the door shut behind me and the music cut off. I heard a couple of people trying to convince the bouncer to let them in, but ignored the line of people waiting for the club and started walking down the poorly lit street alone.

It was so stupid. I always convinced myself that he wouldn't ditch me, or maybe it could be fun. But it never was. I always just ended up by myself, like always.

"Screw him." I muttered darkly. "It's not like I need him around anyways."

I didn't need anyone. I could take care of myself. And besides, I was better off on my own. I had Max, he was all I cared about, and that was enough trouble. Letting anyone else in was just an invitation for them to hurt you.

Though it was only September, it was a cold night and I hadn't brought a jacket. Annoyed, I hugged my arms close to myself and started what I knew would be a very long walk home.

It only took me a few steps to realize I was being followed.

"Whoever you are," I said without turning around. "Just leave me alone. I'm not in a good mood."

"I told you, you couldn't get away from me."

I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand.

I turned to see the guy from the club, only now, he didn't seem nearly as intoxicated. His smile was cruel and entirely sober.

"I didn't think it would be this easy." He said taking a step closer to me, his eyes flashing. "You have a very strong scent."

"You're not human, are you?" I said uneasily as the monster's image started flickering.

"No." he said with a twisted grin. "And neither are you demigod."

The next thing I knew, the man from the club's image had been replaced with a full-grown Cyclopes, that lunged for me.

I hit the ground and rolled back onto my feet, daggers ready.

"You know you picked a really bad day to try and piss me off." I said angrily slashing at his arm as he made a second grab for me. He cried out in pain and backed away, clutching his wound.

"What is it with you monsters anyways?" I asked getting ready to strike again. "Why can't you leave me alone?"

"Die demigod!" he shouted. I struck out again, but this time I was unlucky. He managed to dodge my attack and tackled me into the wall of a near by building. My head collided with the brick, and bright lights swam in my vision as pain radiated through my skull.

I groaned and the Cyclopes laughed.

"That wasn't much of a fight." He said pinning me against the wall, his hand crushing my throat as he lifted me up. "But then again, what do you expect from a daughter of Aphrodite?"

I struggled but he was too strong. There was a clatter as my hands went limp and I dropped my daggers.

"You are beautiful aren't you?" he asked tightening his grip as I tried desperately to pull him off. "To bad your pretty face can't save you now."

He laughed.

I couldn't breathe, everything seemed to be slowing down. My lungs burned, aching for air, as darkness started eating away at the corners of my eyes. Just as I was sure I was going to die, there was a hissing sound, a flash of bronze, and the Cyclopes screamed.

The next thing I knew, there was an explosion of yellow dust and the pressure on my throat vanished. My feet touched the ground and my knees buckled.

"Cali!" a worried voice shouted.

I collapsed, coughing, and a pair of strong arms caught me.

"Are you alright?"

Suddenly, my eyes met a pair of familiar gray ones.

"Will?" I asked in disbelief.

"Are you alright?" he repeated.

"How did you find me?" I asked still confused.

He didn't answer.

"Let me go." I said trying to push him off of me.

"Cali you just got hit on the head I think you should-"

"I don't need your help!" I said furiously and he let go looking angry. There was a nasty silence between us in which I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. I wasn't really upset at him I was embarrassed. Embarrassed about Tyler, my situation with Max, and that I'd been too weak to handle the monster on my own. Once again the perfect Will Silverman had to save his favorite charity case. As if I didn't have enough reasons to be humiliated by him.

"You didn't have to come." I said darkly.

"Yeah." He said sarcastically. "No doubt you were handling things." He said repeating my words from earlier and I felt my blush deepen.

"I would have been fine." I shot back.

"Because you clearly had everything under control."

"I didn't ask for your help." I said heatedly. "I never did! So why do you keep butting in?"

"What was I supposed to do? Let you die?" he asked furiously.

"It would make things easier on everyone wouldn't it?" I shouted and he looked confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked and suddenly I found that I couldn't look at him.

"That's the truth isn't it?" I asked bitterly. "Everyone's life would be better if I just disappeared."

I hadn't meant to say it. It just sort of fell out and inwardly I cursed myself.

"Cali…" he said quietly. "Don't say that."

I looked at him. His expression had changed quite drastically and with horror I realized that it was pity. Something I couldn't stand from him. I'd rather he be pissed then feel sorry for me. Anger was something I knew how to deal with. It was directed at me all the time.

"Yeah, well no one asked you." I said ready for the attack. "Gods why are you so obsessed with me Will? You're so pathetic, why won't you leave me alone?"

Though I knew I wasn't angry at him, Will was the only outlet I had, and all the feelings I'd been trying to repress for so long seemed to boil to the surface. How much I hated my parents, my frustrations with school and my friends, how angry I was that I never got to see my brother. It all lashed straight out to him.

No matter what I said, I knew he would take it. And being the horrible person that I was, I couldn't stop myself from letting it all out. From looking at the one person who hadn't given up on me, and trying to hurt him.

It didn't work.

"Get it out." He said with a sigh.

"What?" I asked taken aback.

"I know you." He said cryptically. "You take your anger out on other people so," he shouldered his blade and looked at me patiently. "Go ahead."

I glared at him. I expected him to be angry. I wanted him to shout at me, to justify letting more of my anger out, and this wasn't ok. He had no right being understanding. I wanted to be angry, not understood.

"You don't know what you're talking about." I said darkly.

"Ok Cali." He said sounding bored.

"You don't know anything about me!" I said, unable to keep from shouting again.

He didn't answer and it only infuriated me more. What was his deal? Why did someone like him care what happened to someone like me? He was the golden boy, I was nothing but a screw up. What reason could he possibly have?

"Why do you do this?" I shouted at him in frustration. "What do you want from me?"

"I don't want anything."

"You're lying." I said clenching my hands into fists to keep them from shaking. "No one does this sort of stuff without a reason."

"All I want is to take you home Cali." He said quietly.

"I don't want to go home." I said angrily.

"Then where do you want to go?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

I didn't answer.

The truth was, I didn't know. I didn't have anywhere to go. I couldn't be with Max, I didn't want to be with my father, and Tyler clearly didn't want me around. I was alone.

I shivered as the cold night breeze hit me and was surprised when Will shrugged off his jacket and put it on my shoulders.

"I don't want-" I started, unable to stand his help with anything but he cut me off.

"I don't care." He said stubbornly. "And I'm not leaving you, not when I know there's monsters lurking around, so don't ask."

I glared at him.

"Won't your Mom be mad if you stay out all night?" I asked suspiciously.

"She'll get over it." He said with a shrug. "And don't think you can try and run off. I'll be able to find you."

"How?" I asked shrewdly.

He didn't answer.

"Gods you're irritating." I said and started walking.

"Where are you going?" he asked sounding confused.

"You asked where I wanted to go right?" I said not bothering to see if he was keeping up. "Well I've decided."


	8. Chapter 8

Wpov

Cali ended up dragging me half way across town to a run down 24-hour restaurant called 'Sacchi's Diner', that looked as if it should have been shut down years ago.

She must have been familiar with the place because she didn't even glance at the menu before ordering.

"What do you want?" she asked raising an eyebrow as the waitress left our booth went to put in her order.

"Nothing. I don't have any money on me."

At this she laughed.

"What?" I asked suspiciously.

"You're with me remember? You don't need money. I haven't paid here in years."

"That's taking advantage of your powers." I said frowning.

"That's not my problem."

"It's wrong."

"Says who?" she said her eyes narrowing. "It's not my fault I have charmspeak. But I might as well use it since it's here."

I stared at her.

"What?" she snapped.

"Have you ever thought that maybe you could use your abilities to do something good?" I asked her.

"The thought hadn't occurred to me, no." she said sounding bored.

I shook my head.

"What?" she asked annoyed.

"I just don't get you sometimes Cali." I said quietly.

"What does that mean?"

"You've got all this talent and all this potential, and you're just wasting it."

"Spare me the lecture." She said rolling her eyes. "I don't need your, "you're better than this" speech."

"But you are."

She scoffed.

"I'm serious." I said looking at her. "You have the unique ability to make anyone, literally anyone, listen to you. And you only use it for yourself."

"And what would you do?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno." I admitted. "But I'd find away to use it for good."

"Of course you would because you're Mr. Perfect. Have you ever considered that not everyone is like you?" she asked crossing her arms over her chest and giving me a strange expression. As if she wasn't sure if she felt annoyance or pity. "I know your life is all sunshine and butterflies but wake up Will, the world doesn't work that way. There's not enough room on your pedestal for the rest of us."

"Have you even tried?"

"Why is it my responsibility?"

"Because you have the power."

"I didn't ask for it." She said bitterly. "I didn't ask for any of this. Monsters, and magic, and being a demigod. And whatever other lunatic shit our parents decide to throw at us. Why should it be my problem to do anything about it? I just want to be left alone." She paused and looked out the window. "I just want to be normal."

"Well you're a demigod." I said frowning. "So being normal is pretty much off the table."

She made an irritated noise.

"But it doesn't matter if you asked for it or not." I continued when it was clear she wasn't going to speak. "It's your life."

"Yeah, you're right." She said annoyed looking back at me. "It is my life. And it's none of your business so stop butting in."

"I just think there's more to you." I said shrugging.

"Well there isn't." she said moodily. "Sorry to disappoint you, but it seems that disappointing people is all I'm good at."

I was spared the need to respond to this statement by the arrival of her pancakes. They looked surprisingly tasty for such a run down restaurant.

"How do you know about this place?" I asked as she started to eat.

"Why do you care?" she asked suspiciously.

"I'm just making conversation, there's no need to bite my head off."

She gave me a skeptical look.

"If you must know, Max and I used to come here all the time, back when he was still allowed to be around my Dad."

"You went here?" I asked in surprise looking around at the greasy counter tops, and peeling wall paper.

"It was in better shape back then." She admitted. "We'd do things as a family, going to the movies or the park or something stupid like that, then come here. Eventually, my dad stopped taking us, but Max would convince his mom to let him meet me here but…" her expression darkened. "Obviously. That's not the case anymore."

"What happened with your Dad?" I said surprised to hear that he'd ever been anything other than the raging alcoholic he was today, let alone a family man. "Why'd he stop coming?"

"I'm done with back story." She said shaking her head.

"Why?"

"Because I don't feel like talking about it." She said stubbornly. "I notice you never talk about your life before you moved."

"Fair point." I said grabbing one of the strawberries on her plate and eating it.

"I do have a question for you though." She said.

"What is it?"

"My Charmspeak." She said giving me a shrewd look. "It doesn't work on you. Why?"

"I don't know." I said. This was a bold face lie. I knew exactly why her Charmspeak didn't work on me, but telling her that would only reveal that I was working for her mother. "Maybe I'm just special."

"Great," she muttered. "Another reason why you're so much better than everyone else. Any other amazing talents you're hiding? Resistance to fire? The ability to regurgitate rainbows?"

"Nope," I said grabbing another strawberry. "Just you average every day demigod with superb reflexes and innate battle skills."

"You're just the perfect hero aren't you?" she asked in mock admiration.

"You're the one who keeps saying that," I pointed out. "Not me. Have you ever thought maybe I've got problems too?"

She laughed, but it was bitter.

"Like what?" she asked smirking. "Too many girls want to go out with you? You've got too many friends?"

"Well there's one girl who refuses to accept that anyone who cares about her."

She glared at me.

"Why do you do this?"

"Do what?"

"Pretend like you give a damn about me."

"I'm not pretending."

"Yes. You are." She said.

"What makes you think that?"

"Because you have no reason to." She said darkly. "So I don't trust you."

"Why?"

"You're life is great, you've got friends, your family is perfect, and you're the best hero of our generation. So why waste your time on someone like me? We're not even friends."

"Do I need a reason?"

"You wouldn't do it if you didn't." She said in exasperation. "People are selfish they don't do things without a purpose."

"Demigods have to stick together don't they?"

"Bullshit." She growled.

"What do you want me to tell you Cali?" I asked her.

"The truth." She said angrily. "Why do you put so much effort into protecting me, when all I do is push you away?"

"Cali, it's not that simple."

"Uhg I'm so sick of you!" she said slamming the table and standing up. Several people turned to stare but she ignored them. I couldn't help but feel guilty from the way she was looking at me, so frustrated about information she couldn't have, she looked just like Max. "You're so confusing! Why can't you be straight up for once? Tell me why do I matter to you?"

I didn't answer and she gave me a disgusted look.

"And you wonder why I don't trust you."

She turned and started walking towards the exit.

"Cali," I said chasing after her. "Where are you going?"

"Home." She said stiffly wrenching open the diner door and stepping out into the chilly night. "At least there I know WHY my dad hates me."

"It's three in the morning." I said catching her by the arm as we reached the sidewalk. "You shouldn't be walking alone."

"I'll be alright." She said jerking her arm out of my grip, but just as she said this, three men stepped out of a near by alleyway. They were big, tall, and covered in tattoos, but what was worse, they all wore the same cruel smile as they stepped closer towards her.

My body froze as ice filled my veins and my heart began to pound.

"What do you want?" Cali asked them in irritation.

"Shut up." I said quietly.

"Excuse me?" she asked incredulously.

"Just stop talking." I said putting an arm around her, they hesitated.

"Get off of me."

"Not now Cali." I hissed and for once she fell silent. She glanced at the men, who had stopped, and were looking at me their eyes narrowed.

"Do you know them?" she asked suspiciously.

I ignored her.

"Let's go." I said dragging her away from the alley.

"Will, what's going on?"

"Trust me, you don't want to get mixed up with those guys."

"What do you mean?"

Again I ignored her, and continued to drag her away from the men as fast as possible.

"Seriously Will." Cali said in a strange tone. "You're starting to creep me out. What's going on? Who were those guys?"

"They're bad people." I said quietly. "And they don't like me very much."

"They don't seem like the kind of people you would know." She said skeptically.

"Yeah well," I said tersely. "You said it yourself, you don't know that much about me, do you?"

Cpov

I wasn't very happy about being escorted home by Will like a ten year old but this time I kept it to myself. He was acting weird and if I was totally honest, it was kind of freaking me out.

We didn't talk much during the walk, but I noticed he had a funny expression like he was lost in thought and it didn't change until we made it back to our floor.

"Well," he said looking at my door. "Guess this is good night."

I didn't answer, but when I reached out for the door, I found it was locked.

"Shit." I said darkly.

"What?" he asked.

"It's locked."

"Then unlock it." He said stifling a yawn.

"Wow genius, I wish I'd thought of that." I said sarcastically and he raised an eyebrow. "I can't unlock it, I don't have my key. I didn't have time to grab it when he-" but I cut myself mid sentence. "When I left." I finished without looking at Will.

"You can crash at my place," he suggested.

"Yeah that's not happening." I said darkly.

"What you're just going to sleep in the hall?" he asked his voice heavy with sarcasm.

"I'll figure something out." I said stubbornly, uncomfortably aware that if Tyler ended up going home with the blonde I didn't have anywhere to go.

Will let out a sigh.

"I can get you in."

"What?" I asked confused.

"Just, stay here for a second." He said cryptically. "I'll be right back."

"Ok." I said frowning but remained in the hall as he unlocked his apartment and went inside, only to comeback out with a book bag I'd never seen before.

"No questions." He said when he caught my curious expression.

"Why? What's in there?"

"Those are questions." He said scowling. He then kneeled and started pulling out a series of questionable objects from the bag. Wire cutters, duct tape, a screwdriver, and copper wire. He finally seemed to find what he was looking for when he pulled out a small black box, that when opened, revealed a set of delicate metal tools that I'd never seen in person before, but knew from TV shows and the internet what they must be.

"You can pick locks?" I asked with interest.

"That's a question." He said blankly. He looked at the lock, then after a moment's consideration, picking two of the tools.

It took less then thirty seconds. The next thing I knew, there was a distinct 'click' that came from the lock. He then stood up, turned the knob, and easily pushed open the door.

I stared at him.

"What?" he asked looking suddenly uncomfortable now that, for once, he had my undivided attention.

"How do you know how to do that?" I asked him in amazement. I didn't know much about picking locks, but I knew it wasn't a very common skill, and that it often took a long time. Where had golden boy picked that up?

His expression was hard to read as he shouldered one strap of the book bag.

"Good night Cali." He said and walked back into his apartment leaving me staring after him.


	9. Chapter 9

Wpov

 _Blue flashing lights lit up the back of the car. I threw open the door and fell out of the driver's seat._

 _Shouts._

 _Dazed, I forced myself off the pavement and started to run, but it was too late. Something heavy tackled me and my arms were forced behind my back as my head was pushed to the ground. Sirens blared, my heart pounded in my ears..._

I woke with a start and sat up breathing heavy. I looked around, my eyes wide in panic as my heart beat out of control but I saw nothing but my dark room and the blankets I'd tangled myself in.

I was ok. No one was in here but me.

"Just a dream…" I said running my fingers through my hair and realizing I was covered in sweat.

I took a couple deep breaths and stood up, looking at my clock to see it was six forty-five in the morning. Great. Only three hours of sleep.

Cursing Cali and her apparent need to make my life miserable I walked out of my room and towards the kitchen to make coffee. There was no point in trying to go back to sleep, I had to be up soon for my track meet anyways.

Five minutes later, I was sitting on the fire escape outside my window, with a mug in my hand and watching the sunrise.

It had been a while since I'd had that nightmare. I thought it had finally gone, but the events of last night must have brought it back. Without thinking, I looked back at Cali's window which was next to mine and also connected to the fire escape. Her bed was on the opposite wall, but still in sight and I grinned slightly when I spotted her curled up under her blankets, hugging her pillow as she slept. She looked so different when she was asleep and not scowling at me. Somehow she looked younger.

I found myself wondering what she was dreaming about, she looked more relaxed than I'd ever seen her. Whatever it was I hoped it made her happy.

I watched her until I heard my alarm go off from inside my room and knew I should be getting ready.

I climbed back onto my bed, shut my window, and went to open my door, but when I stepped out into the hall, someone was already waiting for me.

It was Dave, with his arms crossed over his chest, and he didn't look happy.

"What's wrong?" I asked uncomfortably.

I was nearly a foot taller than him, and definitely stronger, but I had a lot of respect for Dave as a person. I didn't like the feeling that he was angry with me, I couldn't help but be intimidated.

"You tell me Will." He said frostily while pulling a small black box out of his pocket and holding it up for me to see. "Care to explain this?"

I felt my entire body go cold.

"Where did you find that?" I asked.

"It was on the table." He said glaring at me and I realized I must have been so tired last night I'd forgotten to hide it with the book bag. "And it showed up after you had supposedly gone to bed."

There was a nasty silence that seemed to stretch for an eternity between us.

"It's not what you think." I started.

"I thought you were done with this Will." He said darkly.

"Nothing happened." I said avoiding his gaze.

"Do you know what your mother would say?"

"I didn't do anything." I said this time looking directly at him. "Cali-"

"Why am I not surprised she's involved?" he muttered sarcastically.

"Look nothing happened ok?" I said trying to control my temper. I knew he was only trying to do what he thought was best for me, even if he couldn't understand. "She was locked out last night so I helped her get into her apartment that's all."

"That's all?" he asked incredulously. "Will what if someone had seen you? Thought you were breaking into their apartment? They could have called the police, and with your record-"

"Well no one did see me." I said annoyed. "And everyone knows Cali lives there. No one would have called the police."

"Why didn't you just call the building manager?"

"It was faster."

"That's your defense?"

"It was three in the morning, you really think they were going to show up anytime soon?"

"What was she doing out at three in the morning?"

"I don't know." I lied avoiding his eye.

He continued to glare at me for another minute before he sighed and his expression softened.

"Look." He said in a calmer tone. "I know what this girl is to you."

My stomach clenched and my heart skipped a beat, but I didn't have anything to worry about.

"You think you can help her and make her change like you did, but I'm telling you, some people can't be saved. And this girl is trouble."

I didn't answer.

"I don't know why you feel responsible for her, but I do know one thing. If you let her," he gestured to the lock pick set. "She's going to take you down a road you don't want to go."

"It's not like that." I muttered. I knew Cali didn't want help. I knew she had no intention of changing. I was just Aphrodite's daughter's babysitter, here to clean up the messes she made.

"Really? Then who was it that caused you to sneak out, lie to me, and break into someone else's apartment last night? If it wasn't Cali?"

Again, I didn't answer.

"You're a good kid Will." He said earnestly. "But it's very easy for someone like you to get caught up in the mistakes of someone like her. And before you know it, you'll be right back where you started. Don't let her push you into taking that first step."

He turned and started walking back into the living room.

"You're not getting these back." He said holding up the box.

I didn't argue. They'd be easy enough to steal if I ever wanted them, the safe in his office was laughably simple and it wasn't as if I needed them to pick locks. If I wanted to, I could pretty much get into anywhere I please. The tools just made it easier.

Cpov

Saturday morning was a rough. Max had an early track meet, and as I discovered last night, the kitchen was empty, so I didn't even have coffee to help me through, but it was all worth it when he came bounding up to me in front of the bleachers after he'd won his favorite event.

"You came!" he said, jumping the fence that separated the track and the spectators, then tackling me into a hug.

"What did you expect?" I asked rolling my eyes, but failing to hide my smile. "I always do."

"You look tired." He said as he let me go.

"Late night." I said as we started walking towards the benches near the concession stand.

"You were with Will, weren't you?" he said slyly and I froze.

"Why would you say that?" I asked turning towards him.

For answer he gestured towards the marquee his team was sitting under. Will was laying flat on his back, his head propped on his bag, and his eyes closed.

"He's been pissing the coaches off by sleeping between events. He said he had a late night too. And according to Chris he wasn't with any of his friends so," he smirked. "Who does that leave?"

I didn't answer at first. A few girls from the other teams were giggling and pointing at Will. This wasn't entirely out of the norm. He was a legend in the track community, and it was like this every time, even the guys talked about him.

Will was nudged by Chris and after a moments conversation, he stood and they went to warm up together for the next race. He spotted the girls staring at him and they all collapsed into fits of giggles.

'Idiots.' I thought annoyed. As if they stood a chance…

"Cali!" Max said and I was brought back to the present.

"What?" I asked blankly, but when I saw his eager expression I realized what he was waiting for. "Oh, yeah. I was with him."

"Seriously?" he asked with what I considered far too much enthusiasm as we made our way to the benches and sat down.

"Yeah. What's the big deal? Why do you care?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"What's the big deal?" he asked incredulously. "Are you serious? Who are you and what have you done with my sister?"

"Ha ha." I said sarcastically.

"But really, what were you guys doing?"

"Nothing." I said casually but he didn't buy it.

"Oh come on Cali you can't expect me to believe that."

"Why not?"

"Because Will NEVER goes out the night before a meet, all his friends complain about it, and you spend most of your time avoiding him. So." He continued with a smirk. "Clearly something happened."

I didn't respond. What was I supposed to say? He'd get angry if I told him about Tyler, he wouldn't believe me if I told about the Will picking locks, and if I said anything about the Cyclopes well, he'd think I was insane.

"Fine, don't tell me." He said shrugging. "I can't say I'm surprised. He didn't want to talk about it either."

I was grateful for that. I heard the starting pistol and looked at the track to see Will sprinting full speed leaving everyone in his dust. The sad part was, I'd seen enough of his races to know even though he was already in first, he was having an off day.

"Hey can I ask you something?" Max said hesitantly.

"Sure." I said still watching the race.

"Without you freaking out?"

That caught my attention.

"What?" I asked cautiously and again he seemed unsure if he had the nerve to come out with what he wanted to say.

"Well, Will said something the other day, and it's not like I don't believe him. But I wanted to hear it from you."

"What did he say?" I asked frowning.

"He said his Dad knows your Mom. Is that true?" He had been avoiding my eye up until this point, but it appeared that had curiosity won out over fear because he looked at me.

It took me a minute to gather my thoughts.

"I know you don't like to talk about her." He continued quickly looking almost scared of how I was going to react. "It's just, it's an odd coincidence isn't it? His Dad and your Mom knowing each other, and both of you ending up here, and, well… it just seems like such a stupid thing to lie about, and I don't think he would lie about it, but I mean what are the odds ya know?" he was rambling at this point and I felt guilty that he was so afraid of how I would react to this he felt such a need to explain.

I held up a hand and he fell silent, watching me anxiously.

"It's true." I said carefully. "My Mom does know his Dad."

"Seriously?" he asked in amazement.

I nodded.

"How? How did they meet? How long have they known each other?"

"They've known each other a while." I admitted.

"Well Will's Dad sometimes comes to the more important races." He said tentatively.

"I know." I said flatly. Even though he was one of the main twelve, Hermes always had time for Will. Whether it was showing up for crucial track meets, or showing up with new track gear and taking him out for his eighteenth birthday, the golden boy's father always made sure his son knew that he was loved.

"Maybe you could talk to him and he could get you guys in touch."

"No." I said coldly.

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to talk to her."

"But she's your Mom."

"So?" I said feeling my temper rise.

"So you should at least meet her."

"I don't want anything to do with her."

"I'm sure if you just talked-"

"I said no!" I shouted furiously getting to my feet and he looked at me his eyes wide. He'd never seen me this angry, especially not at him. "Why don't you get it? I'm not like Will! I don't want to talk to her!"

"Cali, I'm sorry. I just-"

"I don't want to hear it." I said bitterly. I knew this wasn't his fault, and that he was just trying to help, but I couldn't stop myself from lashing my anger out at him. Partly because I knew most of my anger was at myself. I hated myself for it, but deep down I knew that part of me was extremely jealous of Will and his relationship with his father. It only infuriated me further because I didn't want to care.

I started walking away.

"I'll see you later."

"Cali-" Max started but I didn't turn around. I couldn't take it right now, I couldn't handle being Cali the big sister that he knew when we were little, the one who smiled through everything, the one that nothing bothered. In fact, Cali was the very last person I wanted to be.


	10. Chapter 10

Cpov

When I got home, it was to find that my father had disappeared. This didn't bother me, he'd been gone for days before, sometimes even weeks at a time, and he'd always managed to find his way back. It was actually kind of a relief. At least I could stay in my room and not have to worry about being screamed at.

It took a little over an hour for Will to find me, not that I was surprised. I'd gotten used to his attempts at damage control, but that didn't make the tapping at my window any less annoying.

He'd climbed out onto the fire escape, and clearly wanted to talk about what happened between Max and me.

"Go away." I said closing the blinds in his face.

"You might as well come out." He said his voice muffled through the glass. "I'm just going to open it if you don't."

"Good luck with that." I said annoyed. The window was locked.

I heard a small "click" and scowled. I pulled up the blinds as he slid open the window only to see him sitting, with an irritating smile, his face level with mine.

"I don't like you." I said glowering and his smile grew slightly.

"You'll get over it."

"How do you know how to do that?" I asked still annoyed, but taking the hand he offered and letting him pull me out onto the fire escape.

He ignored this and said.

"Max looked rather unhappy after the meet today."

It was my turn to ignore him. I let my feet dangle off the edge of the fire escape and glared at the people walking on the sidewalk below.

"He said you two got into a fight."

"I don't see how that's your business."

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Do I ever want to talk about anything with you?" I asked looking at him.

"There's a first time for everything."

"Right." I said sarcastically and there was a pause in which neither of us spoke.

"I know why you're upset." He said eventually.

"No you don't." I said bitterly. This was the last thing I needed right now. Pity from the golden boy with the perfect life telling me everything was going to be ok.

"Yes, I do." He said calmly. "It might be difficult for you to believe Cali, but I know what it's like to have an Olympian for a parent."

I looked away. This was one of the many frustrating things about Will. As much as I hated how he tried to butt into my life, and tied to "understand" me, in several ways he was the only one who could. Though we were very different, he was also a demigod, which meant there was an entire side to my life that only he could relate to.

"Yeah, because you have it so bad." I muttered bitterly. His father visited him all the time. Will was probably his favorite son. "What it must be a whole week since your father visited you?"

He didn't respond.

"Don't expect to get any sympathy from me Will." I said acidly. "You're life is perfect, your family is perfect. You don't know what it's like."

"You think that I haven't been through the same things as you?" he asked quietly. "Feeling abandoned and alone, then feeling like a freak when you find out that your parent is a God? Not being able to tell people, even the people closest to you, about who and what you really are? Constantly in fear, being chased by monsters, and wondering why your parent never stops them? Angry that for most of your entire life, they act like you don't exist? Being unsure which half of you, the mortal or the demigod is the real you? Having to deal with the confusing powers and the damn side effects of being a demigod while trying to live in the mortal world?" his voice was hard now and had risen in volume. "You think I don't know how that feels?"

I didn't answer, but was horrified to feel myself blush. I looked away.

"I know you're angry Cali, and I don't blame you. In many ways you have every right to be." He said quietly. "But you're not alone."

I didn't answer only continued to glare at the street below me.

I hated this feeling. Anger and resentment were building inside me as well as a strange sense of hopelessness. Like being stuck behind a fifty foot glass wall, where you know you can't escape, but you can see everything in the rest of the world outside.

I wonder if he really did know how that felt. Or was he just telling me what he thought I wanted to hear?

We sat in silence for a while, each of us lost in thought, until I heard him stand up.

"Where are you going?" I asked looking up at him.

"I'm going to bed." He said stretching and stifling a yawn. "I had a very long track meet today, and someone kept me up late last night."

"That's your own fault." I said shrugging.

"Yes, I'm so sorry for saving you from the Cyclopes. How rude of me."

I rolled my eyes.

"Shut up Will." I said and though I wasn't completely sure, I thought I heard him laugh as he slid though his window and on to his bed.

"Idiot." I muttered darkly also climbing back through my window and shutting it.

Still, he did have a point through. No matter what I went through, as long as Max was there, I was never truly alone.

I grabbed my phone and pulled up my conversation with Max.

'I'm sorry. See you at school.'

I didn't expect a response. He was no doubt already back at his Mom's house which meant that he wouldn't answer until she couldn't see. But just as I put my phone on my desk, I heard it vibrate.

'Me 2. Love you.'

I smiled. Maybe today hadn't been a total waste after all.

Wpov

Cali was relatively tame over the next week. I didn't know if it was something I said, or she was trying to make it up to Max, or simply the fact that Tyler seemed to have disappeared for the moment, but she was going to most of her classes, and I had a rare, generally stress free week.

"You look happy." Chris noted as we walked to his car after school. Usually, I would have walked home after practice, but today it was cancelled and the varsity squad was all meeting up for a team dinner at a pizza place near the school.

"I am happy." I said opening the door to the back seat, tossing my book bag into the car, then sitting in the front. "Do you realize that I've had six consecutive nights of 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep?"

There had been no monster attacks, no last minute morning practices, I'd had no quizzes or tests. It was almost too good to be true.

"That's a new record for you." He said flopping into the driver's seat and turning the key in the ignition. "Your girl's been pretty quiet too."

"Will you stop calling her that?" I asked annoyed while getting in on the passenger's side. "You of all people should know that I am not dating Cali."

"Just because you're not dating her, doesn't mean she's not your girl." He said with a knowing smile and I rolled my eyes.

If someone had told me five years ago, when I'd first met Cali at camp, that in the future people would have assumed that we were dating, I would have thought that person was crazy. Then again, if that same person had shown us the people Cali and I had turned out to be, I would have also thought they were crazy.

I was only thirteen when I spent my first summer there, and although she couldn't have been older than twelve at the time, she was already one of the most beautiful girls in her cabin. I remembered seeing her on my first night at the bonfire and knowing that someone like me would never even register to a girl like her, so I decided not to spend a lot of time thinking about her.

I didn't know her well, so I hadn't noticed when she stopped coming to camp, however I did remember people talking about it, seeming upset. I didn't realize how much she changed until I was approached by Aphrodite, and could hardly recognize the fourteen year old version of her.

By then, I'd made friends, gone through training, and completed quests where as Cali, well, she'd sort of fallen off the face of the Earth.

"How did you meet her anyways?" he asked interestedly as he stopped for a red light and brought me back to the present. "You didn't move here until sophomore year, but you already seemed to know her."

"Her Mom's a family friend." I said automatically.

"The one that walked out on her?"

I nodded.

"So did you guys know each other as kids or something?" he pressed.

"Sort of."

"Sort of?" he repeated sounding confused.

"I knew of her." I explained. "But we didn't really talk. It's hard to explain."

"Funny how things change." He said as the light changed and he turned on to the next street.

"Yeah no kidding." I said as he pulled into the restaurant's parking lot, parked, and we got out of the car.

We stepped into the building to see that most of the team was already there, including Max, the only freshman in a group that was otherwise exclusively upper classmen.

I made my way towards him and took the seat across from his while Chris sat next to me, filling the gap between Max and a few of the runners in our years.

"Thank god you're here." Max muttered looking relieved as I sat down. "I didn't know anyone else here."

"You should try and get to know them better." I said nodding towards the team members farther down the table some of who grinned at me and waved. I waved back. "With your times it's likely you're going to stay on varsity if you do well at the next meet."

He looked uncertain.

"They don't bite."

"Easy for you to say." He muttered. "You're popular. You don't even have to try."

"No I'm not." I said frowning.

"Dude. Have you noticed how many girls have looked at you since you walked in? Not just on our team." He added. "Even the waitress is checking you out."

I looked up to the pretty girl who was handing out drinks. She beamed at me and almost let Chris's water overflow as she filled it.

I turned away.

"I'm not as popular as you think." I said. "And girls aren't the key to getting people to like you. Do you realize how many people make fun of me about your sister."

"They're just jealous." He said shrugging.

"Jealous of being screamed at?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"At least she talks to you." He said looking at me. "Other than Tyler." He said the name as if it left a nasty taste in his mouth. "And me, she ignores everyone. You're the only one who isn't afraid of her. Do you know how many guys would kill to be you? To be even just a little bit close to her?"

"People aren't afraid of Cali." I said frowning. "And we're not close."

"Dude. Yeah they are." He said looking at me as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "They may think she's hot but who here besides you has the guts to talk to her? When they talk about her around you they might pretend they'd asked her out, but you notice none of them actually do. They all think she's crazy."

"That doesn't mean we're close." I said shaking my head and he gave me a strange look it was almost calculating.

"What?" I asked when he didn't speak.

"It's just. You are close to Cali, in a way, even if you don't realize it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you know the way she kind of blows up on you? When you get to close to something she doesn't want to talk about?"

"Yeah."

"She only does that to people she's accepted as someone to be acknowledged by her. Me, our father, you. For dad it's usually when he's acting like a jerk to her, for me, it's when I ask about her mom or remind her that our family has pretty much fallen apart. She doesn't want to admit it in front of me. I think she think's somehow it's her fault and she failed or something." He shrugged. "But when she yells at you, it's different." He shrugged. "Like with me and Dad, it's different cuz we're family she has to care, but with you I've noticed generally it's because of two things. One, she doesn't want to look weak in front of you, or two, because she can't figure you out."

"She can't figure me out?" I asked amused. That was ironic.

"Yeah, you've seen how she reacts to other people. She doesn't register them at all. She doesn't care. But with you she makes an effort to try and understand. So, I figure you have to have some sort of importance to her, even if she wouldn't admit it." He hesitated and glanced at me before glancing at the table. "I could be totally wrong about this, but I think it's because you're the one person she sees as an equal."

"Meaning?"

"Well like I said. You're the only one who isn't afraid to talk to her. And not just like approach her, but stuff even I wouldn't dare bring up around her. I've seen her kick so many people's asses, like people even bigger than you, but she's never tried to fight you, and I don't think you realize how weird that is for her. Especially before you moved here. Half of her suspensions were for fighting, most of them with boys twice her size. She always won. And I know you've been able to get her to talk about stuff that bothers her."

"How do you know that?" I asked frowning.

"She's told me." He said simply. "And besides. Who else could have gotten her to apologize the other day after our fight?"

"Yeah well, you're right about one thing. She'd never admit it." I said gruffly and he grinned.

As much as I doubted Max's theory, I couldn't help but admit he had a point. At first I thought all the blow ups had been me annoying Cali too much. But he was right, she blew up at Max all the time. Anyone who didn't relate directly into her life was sort of ignored. Was he right?

"I noticed you didn't put Tyler on the list. I know she's been mad at him."

He frowned.

"There's a difference between being mad and exploding. I'm sure you've noticed this about her. She's angry all the time, but she tends to disregard the people who anger her. If she doesn't care about them, she removes them from her situation as fast as possible. I've never seen her blow up at Tyler," he said shrugging. "But I have seen her ignore him."

"So what does that mean?"

"I don't think they're as close as he likes to pretend they are. I think she uses him just as much as he uses her."

That was an interesting thought. I was about ask what he meant when a voice interrupted my train of thought.

"Can I get you guys anything?"

We both looked up to see the waitress looking down at us. She was pretty with long dark hair and warm brown eyes that did not leave me.

"I'll have a water and two slices of ham pizza." Max said handing her his menu and looking at me as well.

"I'll have the same." I said.

"Your girlfriend must be pretty mad at you if you have to go to her brother for help." The waitress said casually as she took the menu I handed her. It was obvious she'd been eavesdropping but had only heard parts of the conversation.

"She's not my girlfriend." I said automatically.

"Oh." The waitress said brightly. "Well good, then I don't feel guilty at all for giving you this." She said putting a ripped napkin on the table with a cell phone number next to the name 'Cindy' with a heart over the i.

She winked and walked away to place our orders and I heard Derek, one of the seniors sitting at the end of the table say.

"Dammit Will! I've been trying to get her number since before you even got here."

Chris burst into laughter while several of the runners in my grade snickered.

"Take it then." I said wading up the napkin and throwing it at him.

"Told you." Max said sagely but before I could respond, several of our teammates including Chris came over to hear the story of how I'd gotten the hot waitress's number.


	11. Chapter 11

Cpov

After a week of relative calm, I knew I should have expected something to go wrong. All week I was on edge waiting for some sort of disaster to strike, and it finally did.

"Why is it always me?" I asked jerkily throwing one of my daggers between the eyes of a hellhound. It exploded into yellow dust, but I had to duck as another sprang forward.

All I wanted was to go to the grocery store, but instead, I ended up trapped in an alley with six hellhounds.

"Why can't you attack someone else for a change?" I yelled stabbing towards the next, which managed to block the blow with its massive claws. "Go bother Will!" I shouted forcing it back.

I threw myself on the ground as it dove for me, it's jaws open, ready to tear out my throat. Just as I was about to drive my dagger into it's underbelly, it vanished. And I was covered in disgusting yellow powder. I heard a high-pitched yelp, and saw a third hellhound disappear.

"What the-?" I started but I cut myself off as I was forced to focus on the remaining monsters, bent on my blood.

One charged, racing at me with unimaginable speed, then took a swing at me. I dodged the attack and pierced its side. It howled with rage and turned on me. But before I could even react, there was a hissing sound, a flash of bronze, and the beast was gone.

I turned in utter confusion, only to see Will, not two feet away from me, with his sword drawn and a look of intense irritation on his features.

"How do you keep finding me?" I asked him in blank shock.

"Can you please focus, Cali?" he asked sounding annoyed. "There's still two left."

He was right. I tightened my grip on my remaining dagger and faced the remaining hellhounds. They growled, their hackles raised and their eyes glowing blood red. Suddenly, they charged and Will and I jumped into action.

It was a lot easier with him. Fighting monsters was always better when you had someone to cover your back, and Will was the best.

"For the love of the Gods." Will said panting, watching as the last monster exploded into dust, and looking extremely annoyed. "Only you Cali could attract six hell hounds. An entire freaking pack. I mean one would have been bad enough but six?" he asked to no one in particular then he glanced at me. "How the hell does this keep happening to you?"

"How should I know?" I asked defensively. "Maybe I should be asking you how they find me, you always seem to."

"Are you complaining?" he asked gesturing around at the wrecked alleyway as his sword shrunk back into a ring.

"No." I admitted but I looked away from him. Even I couldn't deny that I had been in trouble. If it had been one monster I would have been fine, even two, but six… Well, that was a different story.

"We should get out of here." He said. "This place is a wreck."

It was true, though the buildings on each side were abandoned, we'd smashed several windows, and caused quite a bit of wreckage and noise. It was only a matter of time before someone came to investigate.

"Yeah." I agreed retrieving my second dagger and they transformed into a claw clip with which I put up my hair. "You don't look so great either."

His clothes were ripped, he was covered in dust, and he was bleeding through his shirt from a cut on his right arm.

"Thanks for noticing." He said scowling.

"Just come here." I said impatiently. "And take off your shirt."

"Buy me dinner first." He said with a smirk and I glowered at him.

"Just do it."

"Ok, ok," he said pulling it off and I saw several faded scars, on his arms and across his chest. No doubt from all the quests he'd been on and monsters he'd fought. I stared at him.

"What?" he asked raising an eyebrow and I blinked.

"Huh? Nothing." I said quickly feeling myself go red. Had he always been that in shape? I'd never really noticed before, but it did present me with an unfortunate question. Was Will hot?

"Alright." Will said giving me a strange look. "Did you want this?" he asked holding up his shirt.

"Yeah." I said tearing off one of the sleeves and then tearing it into strips. "Give me your arm."

I wasn't nearly as good with injuries as a child of Apollo but my summers at camp had taught me a few things. I made a bandage for his arm, which would help with the bleeding.

"That should be good enough to at least get you home. Do you have any divine food?"

He nodded.

"Take some. That should fix you."

"Thanks." He said reaching for his shredded excuse of a T-shirt and I noticed something I'd never seen before. On his back across his shoulders in bold gothic letters was the word 'Chaos.'

"You have a tattoo?" I asked in shock and he stiffened.

"I keep forgetting about that." He muttered pulling on his shirt and avoiding my gaze.

"How long has that been there?" I asked with interest.

He didn't answer.

"Aw c'mon tell me." I said curiously.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Please?" I asked sweetly and flashing him a smile. Charmspeak might not work on Will, but I was a daughter of Aphrodite after all, and he was still a boy.

From his expression I could tell he knew exactly what I was up to. He looked pretty annoyed, but also as if he wasn't sure what he wanted to tell me. Just as I'd figured it wasn't going to work, he spoke.

"I got it when I was fifteen."

"Really?" I asked in surprise.

"Before we moved." He added.

"Oh." I said frowning. "Does your mom know?"

"Yes." He said stiffly.

"Did she ground you?" I asked amused.

"No."

"Then what'd she do?" I asked not exactly sure why I was so interested, but I'd met Will's mom before. It was kind of unavoidable when we were neighbors, and while she was very nice, she seemed like one of those people you didn't want to make angry. And from her personality, I knew that something like this, would make her very angry.

"She kicked me out."

"What?" I asked in shock but he ignored me. He'd already started walking back to the road. "Hold on a second." I said in disbelief as for the first time in living memory, I followed Will. "She kicked you out?"

"Yep."

"I don't believe you." I said frowning. Will was the perfect son. His mother loved him more than life itself. She was at every track meet, every parent teacher night, volunteered to chaperone every dance or class trip, and was on the board of the PTA and unlike most kids, who would have been humiliated by this sort of involvement, he put up with it. Even seemed happy about it. "Your mother would never kick you out."

"Well believe it." He said stopping and looking at me.

"But why?" I asked confused. "I mean, I know she can't have been happy about it but really it's not THAT big of a deal."

"I'm done talking about this Cali." He said shaking his head. "I'm going home. You should too. Odds are if there were that many hellhounds after you, there's going to be more monsters around here somewhere. We're both in danger here."


	12. Chapter 12

Wpov

I was lucky that Dave had an evening class on Fridays, so when I got home, Mom was the only one who was there.

"What happened to you?" she asked her eyes wide as I walked through the front door dirty, my clothes ripped, and covered in scratches. I caught my reflection in the mirror by the door. I looked as if I'd stepped out of a post apocalyptic video game.

"Monsters." I muttered waving it off and walking to the bathroom where we kept the first aid kit and I kept emergency ambrosia labeled as "Will's allergy medication," so Dave didn't accidentally eat it.

I pulled out a square and chewed it as I walked back into the main room. As always it tasted like my mom's homemade strawberry cake. I could feel the cut on my arm instantly start to heal.

"Is Cali alright?" she asked.

"Yeah she's fine." I said automatically then frowned. "Wait how did you-"

"Chris stopped by to drop off your book bag." She said gesturing towards the couch where it was resting. "He said you just took off with no explanation. And there's only one person you'd leave a team dinner for."

I didn't answer.

One of the many amazing things about my mother was that she was the only person who didn't question me about Cali. It was obvious she knew there was more going on than I was telling her, but she never asked me about it or brought it up. She just accepted it. Maybe she was trying to respect my privacy, but I think she'd realized that there were things in a demigod's world that mortals just weren't supposed to know about, and she trusted me to make the right decisions on my own. That being said, I knew she'd always be there if I needed her help.

"Well anyways I'm glad she's ok." She said returning to the kitchen to continue with dinner while talking to me over the bar. "That girl's been through enough as it is, the last thing she needs to worry about is monsters."

Much to Dave's disapproval, my Mom had developed a soft spot for Cali.

"You should probably change." She continued gesturing towards my torn and blood stained shirt. "He gets home in about an hour."

"Good thinking." I said walking to my room about to grab a change of clothes, then changing my mind half way and deciding to take a shower.

I walked to the bathroom, turned on the hot water, and pulled off my shirt. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the reflection of my tattoo and felt my stomach clench.

"It's over." I muttered to myself shaking my head. "You're not going back."

I looked away and tried to focus on other things as I stepped into the steaming water, but I couldn't get rid of a growing sense of unease.

This was ridiculous. It had been years. I didn't know why I was even thinking about this, but again my stomach tightened as I remembered Cali's curious expression as she'd asked about my past.

I closed my eyes and put my head in my hands. That was the last thing I needed, Cali asking questions and dragging up things I'd thought were settled.

If she kept asking question, what would I say?

I didn't know how long I stood there just thinking, but eventually there was a knock at the door and I heard my mother say.

"Will, Dinner's almost ready."

"I'll be out in a sec." I said and I heard her walk away.

I stepped out of the shower glanced at the tattoo again, then put on my towel and walked into the hall.

Because I was so distracted, when I first entered my bedroom, I didn't realize I was not alone.

"Hey."

"Gods Cali!" I said jumping and pulling my towel closer around me realizing she was sitting comfortably on my bed. "What in Hades are you doing here?"

"I came to talk." She said shrugging seeming to have as little embarrassment as her mother about being caught in a place she shouldn't have been at an awkward time. She'd obviously used the fire escape to get to my window, which must have meant what she wanted to talk about was important. Cali never wanted to talk to me, but if something was so urgent that she didn't delay bringing it up until a time she was forced to see me, it must have been big. "Though you might want to put on a shirt." She continued the kind of smile she gave people when she knew she had them in the palm of her hand. I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up. "Not that I'm complaining, but last time I saw your little tattoo you got so cranky."

"Not that you're complaining." I said sarcastically then I froze. "Wait, are you hitting on me?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Well we're a little self centered aren't we? Aren't you even going to ask what I wanted to talk about?"

"What makes you think I want to talk to you?" I asked her sourly.

"Don't you always?" she asked shrugging.

"And you call me self centered…" I muttered. "And no I don't want to talk to you actually. Not without clothes."

"Oh stop being such a prude."

"I'm serious."

"Don't be a baby."

"Come back in five minutes."

"I'm not leaving."

"Fine." I said irritated. "Then go in the closet."

There was a pause when she looked at me.

"You're kidding right?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not."

"I'm not going in there."

"Then leave." I said gesturing towards the window. "The window's right there."

She crossed her arms over her chest all traces of the seductive smile gone, and her eyes flashed green in anger.

"Fine." She said standing up. "But only because what I want to tell you is important."

"Whatever." I said pointing towards the closet.

She stepped into the dark close gave me an annoyed look as I shut the door on her. I twisted the knob and pressed in the button and there was a soft 'click'.

"What the hell? Was that a lock?" Cali asked.

I didn't answer.

"Did you just lock me in here?" she asked banging on the door and the knob shook. "Will you son of a bitch, open the door."

"Shut up." I said quickly.

"I will not! Open then door!" she banged harder.

"Cali," I hissed. "Be quiet my parents will hear you."

"Will?" my mother said and I heard her walking down the hall.

"Keep your mouth shut." I said quietly then walked to my bedroom turning on the my radio on the way.

"Yeah?" I asked trying to sound innocent as I opened the door and my mother looked inside the room.

"What was that banging?" she asked frowning.

"Oh, my closet door got stuck again." I lied quickly. "So I had to knock it a few times to get it unstuck. You know how it is."

"I thought I heard voices." She said still looking a little suspicious.

"Radio." I said.

"Alright." She said looking slightly unconvinced but after another glance around my room seemed to be reassured. "Well dinner will be ready in five, so get dressed and come out to eat."

"Alright." I said.

She shut the door behind her and after making sure she was gone, I put on the first pair of pants and shirt I could find then let Cali out.

"I'm going to kick your ass for that." She said looking remarkably unabashed for such a close call. Part of me wondered if this was her first time hiding from a suspicious parent in someone's shirts.

"Yeah you can do that later." I said shrugging. "Hurry up and tell me what you were going to say, I don't have a lot of time and if my Mom comes back here and sees you-"

"Don't want to upset Mommy?" she asked with a smirk.

"No." I said stiffly while crossing my arms over my chest. "So spill."

"We have a monster problem."

"You mean you have a monster problem." I said. "You're the trouble magnet. I haven't been attacked all week."

"No, I mean we." She said. "If you don't believe me look outside."

"What do you mean?"

"I just told you to look outside didn't I?" she asked annoyed.

I shot her a look but she didn't relent, only pointed towards my window. I crossed the room, kneeled on my bed, looked out the window, and swore.

"Yeah." Cali said her eyes glittering with amusement.

"Why in Olympus is a Hydra outside?"

"That's not all." She said hopping up onto my bed next to me. "From my room I counted three drakons, a griffin, and a Cyclopes. And according to Tyler, there were some freaky hag ladies were asking about us when he went to get a coffee this morning." She gave me a significant look. "Three of them."

"Furies?" I asked ignoring a stab of anger that had gone through me at the mention of Tyler's name.

"What else could they be?"

"What are they all doing here? And why haven't they come in?"

"No idea why they're here but I'm guessing so many humans live in this building they're not exactly sure where we are, but they know we're close. We're going to have some problems getting to school tomorrow, don't you think?"

"Assuming you go." I muttered without thinking and she laughed.

I stared at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You're in a good mood." I said suspiciously. "You're never in a good mood. What gives?"

Normally she would have hated being with me.

I expected her to say something sarcastic and scathing but to my surprise she grinned again. That same confident smile she'd given me earlier.

"I'm looking forward to this fight." She said her eyes, I noticed, were now a bright light blue. "It's kind of fun with you."

"Strange coming from a child of Aphrodite." I said amused.

"I'm not like my siblings."

"Don't I know it." I said shaking my head. "Well. Let's go."

I slid off my bed and started walking towards my bedroom door.

"Aren't you afraid your parents going to see me?"

"Well now that monsters are involved she won't care."

"What about Dave?" she asked looking genuinely concerned and I wondered if Max was right. Was I really important to her? At least enough for her to extend this small amount of courtesy.

"My Mom will come up with something." I said waving it off. "Worse comes to worse, a little charmspeak can't hurt right? Come on."

"Alright." She said also sliding off my bed.

I turned off the radio and we walked out into the hallway.

"Cali." My mother said in surprise when we entered the dining room and I saw Dave go stiff. "W-what are you doing here sweetie?"

"How did you get in?" Dave said looking at Cali suspiciously.

I ignored his question and looked at my mom, giving her a significant expression.

"Cali was just asking me for some help getting rid of the guys that was harassing her earlier. The ones I told you about. They're outside right now."

She nodded that she understood.

"Alright. Be careful."

Dave looked between my mother and I, obviously aware that he was missing something, but allowed us to pass and make it to the front door.

"Well that went better than expected." Cali said when made it into the hall and each readied our weapons.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"No screaming, no broken dishes," she said in what sounded like amazement. "Nothing."

"Why would they do that?" I asked frowning.

"That's what happens when I tell my Dad I'm going out." She said shrugging.

I didn't say anything to this, but it definitely raised some alarming thoughts.

I'd never been worried about Cali dealing with her father. She was a strong demigod and tough fighter, I'd never seen an opponent I didn't think she could handle. Surely her father wouldn't be a problem. But as she took off her jacket as the elevator arrived, obviously preparing for the fight, I noticed slight scratches where the cuts from the glass were just finally beginning to go away and what was obviously a healing bruise around her wrist. I found myself wondering if monsters were the only danger in Cali's life.


	13. Chapter 13

A big thank you to the person who reviewed the last chapter! Honestly, I'd sort of given up on this story but the review really helped!

Cpov

In contrast to the previous week, this week was hell. Monsters were popping up everywhere, outside the apartment, at the store, near the school. No matter where we went, Will and I ran into them, we'd started sticking together just for our own protection. Normally I would have complained about all the time I was spending with him, but I didn't. I really had no choice. If he hadn't been there to help me with this insane amount of monsters I was pretty sure I would have been dead already.

"Cali!"

I felt my head jerk up and I looked around wildly only to find myself in the school cafeteria sitting with Max.

"You fell asleep again." He said frowning. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine." I said yawning.

"What's going on with you this week?" he asked. Since it was spirit week, the school lunches had been shifted and for the past couple of days Max's and my lunch shifts had lined up. Normally I would have taken this opportunity to spend as much time with him as possible, but with the rate of monster attacks increasing each day, I barely had enough time to think let alone sleep. It was impossible to keep myself awake. "You and Will both look as if you've been pulling all nighters to fight a giant blender."

"Lots of alley cats." I said and he glared at me.

"Yeah he wouldn't tell me either." He said moodily crossing his arms over his chest. "I wish you would tell me what you guys got up to. But he keeps saying it's better if I don't know."

"It is." I said through another yawn, watching as Will walked passed with a few of his popular friends. Like me he looked a little rough around the edges, but at least he was staying awake. He said something and they laughed. I watched as one of the girls touched his arm and batted her eyelashes at him. He smiled and I looked away annoyed. Sometimes I was starting to think Will was a bit of a flirt.

I didn't know how he was doing it though. Not only was he going to all his classes, he hadn't missed a single practice, or social obligation. All I had to do was stay awake for the half an hour I had with Max and I still had trouble doing it.

As for my social obligations, I could tell Tyler was pretty pissed at me. I'd been avoiding him so he didn't see me mid monster attack and I knew he knew I was spending more time with Will but at this point I didn't really care. In the big picture of things, Tyler's temper wasn't very important.

It was a little surprising to me that he was so upset though. I figured he would just do what I did when he disappeared on me. Find something else to occupy his time, but it seemed the more I tried to avoid him, the more he seemed to pop up. As I predicted, he'd gotten bored of Abby fairly quickly. To my surprise however, he hadn't replaced her. Instead he seemed content to remind me that he was still around while not actually talking to me.

If I was honest, I thought this was kind of stupid. Didn't he have something better to do with his time? Was he really going to throw a hissy fit because I wasn't spending time with him? I had other things to do. I thought he'd be a little bit more of a big boy than that. It wasn't as if we were normal friends.

"Well whatever you guys are up to, I hope it's over sooner rather than later." He said looking worried. "We've got a meet coming up and if his times keep increasing like they are, he's going to get kicked off varsity."

"Your coach would never take Will off of varsity." I said skeptically. "He's too good."

"He would if his times suck during practices, which they have been this week. And he's annoyed because Will won't tell him why. He doesn't play favorites. He bases each week's varsity count on times alone. That's why I took the place of one of the seniors."

"But he's the captain."

"Yeah. So he should be honest with coach right? I wouldn't be surprised if he makes an example of Will soon. He said school and Track should be our top priorities." He glanced over his shoulder before continuing in a lowered voice. "I heard him talking to the assistant coach saying that Will's obviously put something else first."

I frowned. Even though I knew it wasn't my fault, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty. Surely less monsters would be attracted to him if he left me to fight for myself. He probably would have been fine on his own, he was the best fighter in camp after all, but he stuck with me, for my protection. Even after all the shit I'd made him put up with.

The bell rang which was the signal for all the students to head towards the gym for the pep rally.

"Well I've got to go." He said jumping up. "Varsity athletes are supposed to walk into the pep rally with their teams. I'll see you around Cal."

"See you." I said watching as he jogged to meet up with Will and disappeared behind a couple of cheerleaders that were shaking their pompoms excitedly.

I stood up.

Usually I would have avoided the mass of obsessive mind numbing school spirit like the plague but it was one of Max's first big moments in high school walking around the gym while everyone cheered for him, so I figured I'd be there for it.

Grinning slightly, I walked out of the cafeteria after the track runners into the hall.

Just as I was about to file in to the gym with the rest of the school, I noticed Mr. Jefferson, the P.E. teacher and track coach shepherding his team to the back entrance of the gym where they would walk out. Making a split second decision, I quickly darted back through the people in the crowd towards the coach, mean while thinking about what I had to do.

"Miss Parker." He said with a half amused, half stern voice. He was one of the few teachers here that seemed to like me. Maybe it was because I knew Will, his favorite student and captain of his team, or maybe it was because when I bothered to show up for gym class I was one of the best, but either way, he grinned when he saw me. "I didn't see you in class yesterday. Have you come to tell me why you skipped?"

His smile vanished when he saw my expression. One which I'd purposely made to look as slightly frightened.

"C-can I talk to you for a second coach?" I asked quietly and he looked concerned.

"Of course Cali," he said in a much softer tone while I put in a few fake tears for extra measure. "What's wrong?"

"Can we talk about it somewhere else?" I asked taking a shuddering breath. "Somewhere private?"

He nodded.

"Why don't you step into my office?" he said gesturing towards a small door in the athletic department block of the school.

"Alright." I said quietly but grinned when he turned and I followed him into his office.

Really, this was too easy.

Wpov

Usually I enjoyed pep rallies, but with my lack of sleep and the general bad mood a week's worth of monster attacks produced, all the pep rally for me today was one giant, loud screaming head ache. That, on top of how poorly I'd been running in practice lately, and trying to keep up with school work, I really wasn't looking forward to the conversation I knew I'd have to have with our coach.

I'd been talking before practice to a few of the girls on our team about orchestrating a dinner for one of the runner's birthday that was on the same day as our next meet when he found me.

"Will. Can I speak to you for a moment, alone?"

Immediately, everyone around us went silent.

I sighed.

"I'll talk to you guys later." I said dejectedly.

"Good luck." They muttered in unison.

Heads turned, both JV and varsity, as I walked towards Coach's office. Some people looked curious, others nervous, I spotted Max who looked down right terrified. Coach shut the door behind me and I took the seat in front of his desk bracing myself for the worst.

He was an average sized man with brown hair always hidden under a baseball cap, and as usual he was wearing a whistle around his neck as well as khakis and a polo that just barely hid the beginnings of a beer belly. He paused for a moment, allowing himself to get settled into his chair before looking at me.

"I've just had an interesting conversation with your friend Cali." He said which confused me. "About why you've been showing up to practice looking as if you've gotten no sleep and been beaten."

"What did she say?" I asked trying not to sound utterly confused. What in Hades was Cali trying to do?

"She told me about what happened. About everything that's been going on." He said giving me a shrewd look. "About the men that attacked her outside the supermarket."

My brain, overwrought from exhaustion and lack of sleep was firing at full capacity to try and see what he was talking about and where this was headed, but I tried not to look surprised as he continued.

"She told me how you helped her get away but how they turned up outside your apartment and have been harassing her ever since. And how when she told the police they didn't do anything about it. She said you seemed to have made it your mission to make sure they don't bother her again."

And then it clicked, Cali had been telling coach about the monsters without telling him what they really were. She'd taken the story I'd told my mother to get around Dave only she had embellished it a little.

"Will, why didn't you tell somebody?" he asked seriously.

"It's like Cali said." I said shrugging. "No one would believe us if we did."

"So you risk your life?" he said incredulously. "I thought you were smarter than this, you and Cali could both get hurt."

"No one else seems to want to help her." I said angrily. And this was true. Even if these had been real men, and Cali hadn't been capable of defending herself, I doubted many teachers would have taken her very seriously.

"I know you care about her, but you two can't go running around looking for men who are obviously trouble." He said. "There's a lot more at risk here than losing your spot on varsity or the team captaincy."

"What would you do?" I asked him stiffly.

"Will that's not the point."

"If there was someone out there who was trying to hurt someone you cared about and no one would believe you. Would you just sit there and let it happen?"

He looked at me but did not speak for a very long time. Eventually he sighed.

"Look. I know you think no one cares about Cali in this school, but there's only so much that we as teachers can do. Especially for someone so…" he didn't finish this but moved on to the next part of his sentence. "Nothing I say is going to change your mind is it?"

I shook my head.

"Alright." He said with another sigh. "How many of them are left?" he asked but before I could answer he continued with. "You know what strike that I don't want to know. The less I know the better."

We sat in silence for a moment.

"Tell you what." He said eventually and gave me a searching look then pulled out a stack of forms from his desk. "Here's what we're going to do. I'm going to file a report saying one of our students has been harassed by unknown persons on the campus and request that we tighten security on all unidentified personnel in and around the building and that the authorities are notified. You are taking the next few days off of practice to heal an injury, make up whatever one you like." He said pushing the paper towards me. "I'll get it signed by the trainer. And no one's going to ask too many questions anways, you look as if you've been used as a punching bag. Then you're going to walk Cali home until the situation is resolved. However it may happen. Got it?"

I nodded.

"Good. Then fill out the form and go find Cali before it's too late."

"Yes sir." I said quickly then after scribbling some bullshit about a pulled muscle and signing the form I stepped out of the office only to find nearly the entire team, varsity and JV standing outside the door waiting to hear what had happened.

"Well?" Someone asked but I motioned for Chris to follow me and he detached himself from the crowd and walked with me.

"Will, what's going on?" he asked confused.

"Where's Max?" I asked.

"He said something about meeting his sister by his locker, why?"

"Well I need to find Cali."

"What?" he asked confused.

"Look. I don't really have time to explain I just need to find her."

"What am I supposed to tell everybody?" he asked. "Half the squad thinks you got kicked off of varsity."

"I'm out for an injury."

"But you're fine." He said. "Well, for the most part." He said gesturing towards the bruises and scratches I'd received over the last few days.

"I'll explain it all later, just, keep everyone practicing like normal. You're captain for now."

"Alright." He said frowning. "But you'll tell me what's going on later?"

"Yeah." I said already making my way towards the freshman locker hall. "I'll talk to you later."

"Ok then." He said sounding a little confused but I was already gone.


	14. Chapter 14

Cpov

"So why did you have me tell Chris we were meeting here?" Max asked me frowning at me as I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned up against his locker. "I'm going to be late for practice."

"You'll be fine." I said.

"Do you know something?" He asked suspiciously.

"I know lot's of things."

"And yet you're still dumb enough to skip all your classes." Said a familiar voice and we both looked up to see Will walking towards us.

"And yet you're still dumb enough to try and make me go to them." I said looking up at him. He looked as if he wanted to retaliate, but I'd just done him a huge favor so he kept his mouth shut.

I smirked.

"Wait, is this why we were waiting here?" Max said looking at me annoyed. "Why didn't you just tell me to tell Will to come find you?"

"Your sister works in strange ways." He said not taking his eyes off me.

I stared right back.

"Well." Max said glancing between the two of us. "I'm beginning to feel like a third wheel here so I'm going to go to practice now," he said. "I'll see you guys later."

"See you." We said in unison and after one last glance at us he started walking back to the athletic block to join the rest of his team.

"So I just talked to my coach." He said looking down at me his expression hard to read.

"That's very interesting." I said sarcastically.

"It should be." He said ignoring my tone. "Because he said he talked to you."

"So?" I asked feeling for some reason uncomfortable.

"So he said he knew why I was struggling so much in practices, and he was going to give me a couple days to sort it all out."

"Well that sounds like a very generous offer." I said shrugging and starting to walk away. "He must like you a lot."

"Coach does like me and you're right" He said putting a hand on my shoulder. "It is a generous offer. Too generous. Coach doesn't play favorites. But it is the kind of thing someone would offer you when you worked them over with a little of that charmspeak of yours."

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said pushing his hand off my shoulder. "And don't touch me."

"You didn't have to do it." He said quietly

"I know." I said uncomfortably aware of the fact he was following me.

"Why did you help me?"

I turned back to look at him and he still had that same, unreadable expression on his face.

"Max was stressed about losing you as a teammate on varsity."

"Bull shit." He said angrily. "What's the real reason why?"

I felt my cheeks burn. Very few people could tell when I was lying, and I'd thought that was a good one.

"You help me a lot." I said looking away refusing to meet his gaze. "I guess I was just returning the favor."

"Well, thank you." He said quietly.

"Yeah, well, don't go getting a big head over it." I said glaring up at him. "Don't think that means anything changes between us. I still think you're annoying."

"There's that sweet tempered girl I remember." He said with a sigh. "Well changes between us or not, we've still got a monster problem to deal with. What are we going to do with all these things attacking us? We can't keep this up forever and I don't think either of us wants to go to camp full time."

I shook my head, shuddering at the thought.

"Well then, what do we do?" he asked.

"I'm not sure." I said frowning. "Maybe we should go home and do some research. See if there are any stories or anything about a sudden increase of monster attacks on demigod that aren't associated with apocalyptic prophecies and the end of all times."

"Yeah let's hope." He said with a bit of a rye smile. "Who knows? Maybe we'll run into some monsters on the way." I saw him brush his ring with his thumb. "I wouldn't mind interrogating a few."

Wpov

By some miracle, Cali and I made it home with no attacks. I suggested we do our search together, but she said there was no way in Hades she was spending any more time with me than she had to. So I guess she was right about one thing. Even if she was willing to do me a favor, for the most part, things hadn't changed between us.

After hours or research on the internet, through books, and even calling a few of my friends from camp I had produced zero results.

I was tempted to text Cali and see if she'd found anything but resisted the urge. If she found something she would have told me and me asking about it would only annoy her.

By one o'clock, I still had found nothing. I was tried, my back hurt from sitting at my computer for so long, and I was just considering going to bed when a familiar voice said.

"Hello William."

I jumped and turned to see an extremely beautiful blonde sitting on my bed, a faint rose colored glow emanating from her silhouette.

"I thought I might be seeing you." I said cautiously. But the fact that I'd prepared myself to see Aphrodite, did not make her sudden appearance any easier on me.

"You always were a smart boy." She said with a stunning smile, the exact same smile Cali wore when she wanted something from me. It was unnerving.

"What do you want?" I asked her suspiciously.

"I have a job for you."

"Cali's home right now." I said frowning. "She's safe. What could you possibly want me to do?"

"Well as I'm sure you've noticed, there's been an increase of monster activity in this area."

"Yeah." I said darkly. "You know why?"

"Yes." She said with a scowl. "One of Hecate's mortal children was playing around with magic and accidentally opened a door into the Underworld."

"You're joking." I said blankly.

"Why would I waste my time coming to you to tell you this if it wasn't true?" she asked annoyed.

"Because you like making my life difficult." I said.

"You should have more respect when you speak to me." She said coolly while inspecting her nails. "You do realize I could vaporize you in an instant, don't you?"

"You're not going to do anything to me." I said unimpressed. "If I died, who would protect your precious daughter?"

"You know you're awfully confident of your self importance." She said but now she looked amused. "Who says it needs to be you to protect her?"

"I'm sure you have your reasons." I said darkly. The gods, no matter how much it seemed like it, never did something without thinking it through. "Besides, I'm the best aren't I? Who's more qualified to guard her than me?"

This time she did smile.

"Well, as I've stated before. You are very smart."

"So this door." I said frowning. "What do you expect me to do about it? I can't use magic."

"You can't." she agreed. "But you're not the only demigod in the world are you?"

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning.

"The ability to control magic is, in a sense, as simple as being able to change the environment around you. Think about The Mist. Those who can manipulate it are masters of illusion. They influence other's thoughts and sensations. Can you think of no one with such abilities?" she asked with an expectant look. "Can't you think of anyone who is skilled at manipulation? Who can influence the thoughts and emotions of others with ease?"

"You're talking about Cali." I said uncertainly.

She nodded.

"Wait," I said confused. "Are you saying that Charmspeak is a form of magic?"

"It's closely related."

"And you think that she can close the door?" I asked.

She held up her hand, and there was a flash of gold. When the light died she was holding a scroll written in Greek as well as well as a bronze key.

"She'll be able to do it." She said confidently. "But as you've already seen, monsters have found the door-"

"And you want me to be her body guard." I finished for her.

"Well, that is what we agreed." She said sweetly, but her eyes were as hard as steel.

"Fine." I said flatly. "Where's the door?"

"Are you familiar with the theater on Broad Street?"

"You mean the abandoned one? Where they used to put on all those terrible musicals?"

"It's in the basement."

"Of course it is." I said darkly. "So, if we get caught. Not only will we fail to close the door, but we'll have breaking and entering charges to deal with."

"You both have records so you'd better not be."

"Thanks for the reminder." I said sarcastically.

To be honest, I wasn't really worried about getting caught. The building was abandoned, and any security was likely to be minimal to none. My main concern was keeping Cali safe. That place was huge, and if there really was a door to the underworld in it, it was probably crawling with monsters by now.

"Why does this have to happen to me?" I asked dully. This door could have popped up anywhere, but it had to be here.

"Yes you really do seem to jump from one problem to the next don't you?" she asked watching in interest as I reached into my closet where I hid my tool bag.

"Yeah and you don't help." I muttered.

"Well, as you said." She said with a grin. "I have my reasons."

I could sense her power starting to build and instinctively I looked away. The next thing I knew there was a brilliant flash, and she was gone, leaving me alone in my room, staring after her wondering how she could go to such extreme lengths to protect her daughter, yet not bother to see her even when she was only one wall away.

I shook my head. I'd long since given up trying to understand how a god's mind worked. It usually only confused me more.

Knowing there was no time to waste, I looked out into the hall to make sure my parents were truly in their room, asleep, then made my way to the office where I knew Dave kept his safe.

The combination lock was laughably easy to open, though I did feel a surge of guilt when I realized that the numbers for the code he'd chosen were from the date of my mother's and his anniversary. I grabbed my lock pick set and took out the tools, replacing the empty box, and put them into the front pocket of my bag. I walked back into my room and climbed out on to the fire escape, then knocked on Cali's window.

"Haven't we seen enough of each other today?" she asked annoyed but pulling up the blinds. I was surprised when she opened the window. She seemed to notice.

"You would have just opened it anyways." She explained.

"True." I said.

"What do you want?" She asked crossing her arms over her chest.

"I need your help." I said

"Again?" she asked annoyed but then her eyes fell on the book bag, which was thrown over my shoulder and she looked a little more interested. "With what?"

"Think of it, as an unofficial quest."


	15. Chapter 15

Cpov

I wasn't quite sure I believed everything Will told me about this 'quest' or whatever he wanted to called it, but I decided to go with him anyways. I mean, if anyone but him had tried to get me to go to an abandoned building alone with them in the middle of the night, I would have been majorly sketched out, but it was Will. The worst thing he would do was lure me to the library and attempt to force me to do my math homework.

"I know it's a door to the Underworld and all," I said drawing my jacket closer to me as we approached the crumbling building that had once served as both the venue for local drama productions and community center. "But did it have to open in a place that was so creepy?"

I felt an involuntary shiver go through me as my eyes fell on several broken windows. I'd always hated this place, even when I was little, and it's current state did nothing to improve my attitude towards it.

"Don't tell me you're scared Cali." Will said after he jumped onto a dumpster in front of the fence that lined building and offered a hand to help me up. "I thought you weren't afraid of anything." He finished with a smirk.

"I'm not." I said glowering at him but taking his hand and allowing myself to be pulled up. "But you have to admit, if we get caught here, it looks bad."

"We're not going to get caught." He said putting his jacket over the barbed wire and easily clambering over it. He dropped down and looked up at me. "You coming or not?"

"You seem pretty confident," I said also climbing over the top of the fence. "Have you done this before?"

"Just hurry up." he said impatiently.

"Whatever." I said annoyed. But when I put my foot between the wires on the other side, it slipped and I plummeted towards the ground.

I braced for a hard landing, but faster than the eye could follow, Will darted forward and caught me.

"Be careful Cali," he said in exasperation, as if I were a small child holding him up. "You're going to break your neck."

"You didn't have to catch me." I said stubbornly. "I would have been fine."

He raised his eyebrows.

"If you say so." He said and the next thing I knew he'd let me go, and I slammed into the ground.

"Ow." I groaned.

"Yeah, it would have hurt a lot worse if you'd landed from up there." He said gesturing towards the top of the fence. "Now let's go."

I muttered a few swear words in Greek, and he grinned.

"Language Parker."

I grimaced, I'd forgotten he spoke Greek as well. Still irritated, I stood up and followed after him as he made his way to the back of the building.

"You know a week ago, if someone had told me that you were going to ask me to break into a building, I would have thought they were crazy."

"Yeah, well." He said tersely. "A week ago this door wasn't here was it? And that person probably doesn't realize the kind of stuff a demigod has to do on a mission."

"So you have done this before?" I asked him curiously.

He didn't answer, which was always his reaction whenever I'd stumbled across something that made him even mildly interesting, and a moment of silence passed between us before I voiced one of the questions that had been bothering me since we left.

"Speaking of this door." I said falling into step next to him. "How did you even know it was here?"

"I had a dream about it."

I frowned. To a mortal, that might have sounded weird, but for a demigod, it wasn't that far fetched. What was strange was that if he had really had a vision, I was surprised it was so straightforward. Usually prophetic dreams were confusing, and they didn't really make sense until the moment it was forewarning you of.

"And what makes you think I can close it? Where did you even get this spell?" I asked pulling the scroll he'd given me out of my pocket.

Again, no answer.

We'd reached the back of the building and I saw a back entrance where a padlock was dangling from the chains that were keeping it shut.

"You got your little tools?" I asked him.

"This is a heavy duty lock." He said shaking his head while shrugging off his book bag. "I'd need stronger tools than those. Here hold this." He said reaching into the bag and handing me a flashlight.

"Then how do we get in?" I asked frowning but taking the flashlight and turning it on.

"With this." He said and I felt my eyes go slightly wider as he pulled out a bolt cutter. "Shine the light on the chain."

I did as he asked and watched, reluctantly impressed, as he cut through the chains with what looked like relative ease. After a few second of clanking, they fell to the ground with a heavy 'thunk.'

"What?" he asked when he caught my expression.

"Nothing." I said though I couldn't help but wonder where Will had learned all of this. Was this really the sort of thing that campers had to do on quests?

He tested the door and found that it was unlocked.

"Alright." He said repacking his bag and pulling out a second flashlight before putting it back on his shoulders. "I'd say ladies first, but considering this place is probably swarming with monsters," he twisted his ring and his sword appeared. "I think I'll take the lead."

"Get over yourself." I said rolling my eyes and reaching for the door. "I don't need a body guard."

Before I could touch the handle however, Will caught my arm.

"Get off of me." I said indignantly, tying to pull away from him, but he ignored it.

"Cali, I'm not kidding." He said seriously hardly seeming to notice my struggling.

"Neither am I." I said still trying to free myself, but again, he refused to let go.

"I don't think you realize how dangerous this is."

"Yeah. Lot's of monsters. I get it."

"No. You don't." He said and I was uncomfortable with the way he was staring at me. "Look. I know you're a good fighter, but if there was anyway I could have done this on my own I would have, I wouldn't have brought you here. Unfortunately, I need your help. But before we go in there, I need you to promise me something."

"What?" I asked suspiciously.

"If I tell you to run, you have to do it."

"Fine."

"Even if it means without me."

That caught me by surprise and he seemed to know it. I'd be the first to tell you I wasn't the biggest fan of Will, but he couldn't expect me to just leave him if the situation got risky. Especially not after all the times he'd helped me.

I suddenly found it very hard to look at him, but his gaze remained steady.

"Will I can't just-"

"I mean it Cali." He said. "Until you promise me, we're not going in there."

"This is stupid." I stubbornly and looking away.

"Promise."

"You can't expect me to-"

"Promise." He repeated his voice louder and his hand closed so tightly around my wrist it was almost painful.

"Alright." I said uneasily. "I promise."

"Stay close to me." He said finally dropping my arm and pulling open the door.

I rubbed my wrist, staring after him unsure what to make of his behavior. Why was he acting like this? I'd never seen him look so tense.

I followed him into a medium sized room, with levels that rose in a semicircle on one side of the room. They lead up to a wall that was lined with cracked and grimy mirrors that looked as if they hadn't been cleaned in years.

"What is this place?" he asked sounding confused, shining his flashlight around the dark space.

"It's a choir room." I answered automatically then inwardly cursed myself.

"How do you know that?" he asked with interest.

I shrugged, but avoided his gaze as we continued to walk towards the opposite door.

It led into a dark hallway lined with many doors, some of which were falling off rusted hinges, or had broken panes of glass. Lights and tiles had fallen from the ceiling leaving the floor covered in crumbled plaster and shattered glass, and the eyes of the people on the old show posters seemed to follow us as we walked. It was like a scene straight out of a horror movie. I found myself walking a little closer to Will than I normally would have.

"Jeez, I don't even know where to start." Will said his voice low as he looked around at all the doors. "Think that goes to the basement?" he asked pointing towards the door to our left

"No, that leads to the back of the stage. The stairway that goes to the basement is over there." I said gesturing towards a metal door on the other side of the hall that was painted the same dull tan color as the walls.

He stared at me.

"I used to spend a lot of time here as a kid." I explained again refusing to look directly at him. I could tell he wanted to ask why, but I cut him off before he could start. "Let's just get to this door and shut it ok? I don't like this place."

"Alright." He said shrugging.

As we continued to walk, I couldn't help but feel like something was wrong. If an entrance to the Underworld really was here, how come we hadn't run into any monsters?

I gripped my daggers tighter but kept walking. I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched.

Will seemed to be thinking along the same lines. He kept looking around and over his shoulder every few seconds and fidgeting with his sword.

We were about half way down the hall and passing by an old event board and trophy case when he stopped.

"What?" I asked tensely. "Is something wrong?"

"No it's just…" he started sounding confused and looking at the event board with a frown.

"Just what?" I asked coming closer to inspect it.

"What's a picture of Max doing here?"

"Wait, what?" I asked immediately forgetting about monsters and the Underworld, and leaning into look at the picture that he was now pointing his flashlight at.

Sure enough, there he was. It was an incredibly old picture, he couldn't have been older than eight or nine, and I realized it was from an event that had been hosted here years ago, a youth beauty pageant to be precise. He wasn't alone in the picture either. He was arm in arm with the winner, a pretty girl, about eleven, that wearing a crown and was unmistakably…

"Is that… you?" he asked taking the picture off the wall and inspecting it closely.

I didn't answer.

"Holy Hades." He said looking between me and the photo. "It is. What the? When did? How?" but he was so shocked he couldn't form complete sentences. He turned back to the board and shined the flashlight over other pictures. "Jeeze you guys are all over this thing," he said looking back through several other events and other years I'd won. "Is this why you know this place so well?"

Reluctantly, I nodded.

"So, you were a pageant girl?" he asked his lip twitching as he tried to contain his laughter.

I glared at him.

"That explains how he knew that hair spray would help girl's bobby pins stay in during practice…" he said with an expression of sudden clarity. "After that they were always coming to him for advice. Did you teach him that?"

"Shut up." I said acidly.

"Aw c'm on Cali." He said. "Lighten up. You can't expect me to see this and not have questions."

"I expect you to leave it alone." I said starting to walk away.

"Don't be like that." He said still plainly trying not to laugh.

"Just drop it."

"Cali…" He said putting a hand on my shoulder. I tried to pull away.

"Let me go Will."

"No, Cali stop." He said and his tone was completely different. He was afraid. And then I heard it. A low but threatening hiss that caused my heart to pound and the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up.

We both turned and shined our flashlights around the hall. My heart seemed to fail. Unnoticed by us as we stared at the pictures, we'd attracted the attention of no less than twenty monsters. All of which were creeping towards us, fangs bared, claws extended, and blood lust in their eyes.

I raised my daggers, fully ware that the odds of surviving this were practically zero. I was a decent fighter, and Will was the strongest in camp, but we were out numbered ten to one and those were some incredibly bad odds.

"Do you remember the promise you made to me?" he asked quietly.

"Yes." I said looking around at the ring of monsters but there was no gap. "But I don't think it matters much now, there's no where to-"

"Don't move." He said reaching into his backpack, and pulling out something I couldn't see. "But when I tell you to, run towards the basement."

This calmed me. If he was still planning to try and close the door to the Underworld, then he couldn't have been too worried. If he thought there was too much danger, he would have told me to get out, right?

"Close your eyes." he said.

"Why?"

"Just do it!" he said and I saw him throw something.

I closed my eyes, heard a shattering of glass, a giant whooshing sound and suddenly, through my eyelids I saw a huge flash.

"Run!"

I opened my eyes to see that all around us, monsters were either burning with or being held back by a ring of bright green flames. I sprinted towards the basement door, while somewhere, in the back of my mind, I realized that he must have thrown a bomb of greek fire.

We hacked and slashed our way through several monsters but made it to the door relatively unscathed.

He threw open the door and pushed me through it, slamming it shut behind us.

"Keep moving." He said taking the lead and jogging down the steps as I ran after him, leaving the howls of the burning monsters behind.

The basement was pitch black due to the fact it had no windows, so it would have been nearly impossible to find the shadow of a doorway with our flash lights, if a Minotaur hadn't been stepping out of it.

"Are you kidding me?" I asked my voice weak with disbelief.

I knew he was a legendary monster but I mean come on, did he have to be THAT huge?

"Don't worry about him." Will said holding his sword at the ready, and it growled as it spotted him. "Just focus on shutting the door."

"How am I supposed to do that exactly?" I asked opening the scroll and looking at the words. I'd never cast a spell before. Wasn't I supposed to have a wand or something?

"That you're just going to have to figure out yourself." He said. "I'll be a little busy."

And with an ear splitting roar, the Minotaur charged.

"I don't like this." I muttered to myself. I was much more comfortable being part of the fight than just sitting around and watching.

'You're not supposed to be watching.' I reminded myself. 'You're supposed to be shutting the door.'

But how?

I picked up the key and looked at the scroll, reading the first line aloud. Nothing happened.

I swore.

Well what had I expected? Anyone could just say the words. If that was all it took, Will could have done it himself. But he'd said he wouldn't be able to do it. Why should I?

This didn't make any sense. By all accounts he was a better hero. He was braver, smarter, faster, stronger, and an infinitely more talented fighter. He was a powerful demigod. Why did he need me?

This question nagged me from the back of my mind. He was the one who'd been on quests before. He should know about this stuff. The only experience I had was fighting random monsters that come after me. But all this stuff about doorways and magic I didn't have a clue. What could I do that he couldn't?

And then it hit me. I could use charmspeak.

I had the ability to get almost anyone to do whatever I wanted without force, in fact, I could even convince them that it was something that they wanted to do. That was something Will had NEVER been able to accomplish. He might have been stronger, but this was a different sort of power, one that I was very good at. The only question was, how could I make it work with the spell?

I thought, trying to block out the sounds of Will battling the Minotaur, willing my brain to make connections faster than it was used to.

The problem was when I was using charmspeak, I was using it on people, not complex magical portals that connected the worlds of the dead and the living. So, how could I make it work?

'Well,' I thought to myself. 'Usually when I'm using charmspeak, I'm putting my effort into persuasion, choosing the right words, at the same time increasing my persuasive power while lowering their defenses, leaving them incredibly open to suggestion. Like an super effective fast acting hypnosis.'

But how did that relate to magic?

"Cali! More are coming!" Will shouted but I ignored him. I closed my eyes and continued to think.

Maybe magic was a bit like charmspeak. It wasn't about how strong you were, it was about how well you could manipulate the people, or the situation around you. Instead of trying to force your way through everything and change it, you had to make it work for you.

'Make it work for you…' for some reason that stuck in my mind. Could I make the door work for me, as in convince it to close?

There was another roar and I felt a jet of flame fly passed me, but I ignored it, keeping my eyes closed so as not to break my concentration, and trusting Will to take care of things.

"Any day now Cali!"

I'd never tried to charmspeak an inanimate object before, in theory it shouldn't work because it didn't have emotions, it couldn't feel attraction, but then again, was it inanimate? If it had been created by magic, and all magic was, was environmental manipulation, then charmspeak, another form of environmental manipulation should work.

I opened my eyes.

Ignoring the fact that a drakon and chimera had now entered the room, I picked up the key and the scroll, this time using charmspeak. Willing the door to shut.

And this time, something did happen. As I spoke the words started to glow. At first it was faint, soft gold, but as I continued, the brighter the words seemed to get. I could feel energy flowing from me into the spell and I realized that I was also glowing.

The spell continued and I started to feel strangely weightless and warm. The entire room now was flooded in bright golden light, and I could no longer hear Will or the monsters fighting. As I started to read the final line of the spell, I felt a surge of power go through me, and four glowing bronze chains shot from the corners of the door, meeting in the center and connecting to an elaborate lock, with a keyhole in the center.

I walked towards the door noticing that each monster had also been bound by chains, and were being dragged slowly back towards the underworld.

The last line came to an end, and they were jerked though the frame after which the door slammed shut, and I turned the key in the lock.

The door vanished and as suddenly as it began, the surge of power was cut, the room went dark as the light vanished, and I felt my knees go weak.

"Whoa there." Will said catching me as my body collapsed from exhaustion. "Take it easy."

I knew I was going to faint. I could feel my brain slipping farther from consciousness with each passing second as well as see the darkness advancing from the corners of my eyes.

Just as I was on the edge, there was a flash of soft pink-gold light, and I somehow simultaneously knew and didn't know the woman that appeared in front of us.

"What happened?" she demanded sounding outraged but I didn't understand a word of Will's explanation. I was too busy staring at the impossibly beautiful woman before me.

This couldn't be happening. It made no sense. She couldn't be here.

I was going to fall unconscious any moment, I could feel it, but I fought to stay awake. I tried to separate myself from Will but he didn't let go.

"Mom?" I asked weakly.

Then everything went black.


	16. Chapter 16

Wpov

With Aphrodite's help, I was able to get Cali home easily. After returning the daggers, which Cali had lost while fighting to get to the basement, and expressly forbidding me to tell Cali she was there, the goddess left, leaving me to look after her daughter.

"Remind me never to make you mad again." I muttered to myself as she frowned in her sleep and hugged her pillow closer to her.

I'd known all along that Cali was a capable fighter, and I'd seen first hand how effective her charm speak could be, but never having been under the influence of it myself, I'd never truly appreciated why she was a legend at camp. I knew charmspeak was a rare gift to have, but they spoke about hers in voices that were close to awe. I just couldn't understand how they could simultaneously fear, and respect an ability like that.

That however, had changed when I felt the power radiating from her as she performed that spell. The energy, and glow surrounding her made me feel as if I were in the presence of the goddess herself when she gave me a glimpse of her real power. It was both beautiful and terrifying at the same time, intoxicating but devastating. If I hadn't known it was Cali in front of me, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. Just thinking about it gave me goosebumps.

Most of the time, when Cali was using charmspeak, she didn't seem to be trying that hard. She didn't even have to look at the person before they were tripping over themselves to do what she wanted. I couldn't even begin to imagine how it must feel if she really wanted to mess with your mind.

I looked around the room.

I wasn't sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn't this. I guess if forced to give a description of what I thought I'd find in here, I would have said dark band posters, clothes everywhere, and lots of things like broken cameras or defaced pictures of models to piss off her father. But in reality Cali was actually pretty neat.

Her walls were bare, except for pictures taped up around her desk mostly of her and Max, and there was a shelf full of trophies, crowns, and pictures of all of her pageant wins as a kid.

While it was amusing to see her in the ridiculous outfits and make up, I found myself going back to the pictures of her and Max. I knew that Cali's life hadn't always been miserable, but it was still strange to me to see how much she'd changed. Part of me just couldn't believe that the laughing and smiling girl was her. In these pictures, the younger ones especially, she looked genuinely happy.

I found myself wondering if there was anything I could do to make her that happy again.

I turned back to look at her, only to have something catch my eye.

Above her bed, separate from the others, was a final photo that looked much older than the others around her desk. Wondering why it was by itself, I walked over to take a closer look. It was Cali, but she looked different… older certainly, but also something was off. As always she was beautiful, but Cali didn't wear make up or clothes like that. She looked almost too perfect. She was with a tall handsome man with dark hair who seemed to be in his mid twenties that I was sure I'd never met before, but at the same time I recognized.

I stared at it for several before I realized that this wasn't Cali at all. It was Aphrodite, and the man was her father.

What was this doing here? Cali hated her parents.

I didn't get the chance to ask.

She didn't wake up for several hours. Just as I was considering going back to my apartment for a while to convince my parents I'd been there the entire night, her eyes opened, and she sat up looking confused.

"Where am I?" she said looking around.

"Home." I said and she turned to see me sitting on her desk chair that I'd pulled up next to the bed.

"How did I get here?" she asked rubbing her eyes and. "What happened? The last thing I remember was the door being shut and-" but she cut herself off, and I knew exactly what she was thinking about and that I would have to lie.

"And what?" I asked pretending to be confused.

"And, well, I thought I saw…" she looked at me uncertainly. "Was anyone else there?"

"Besides you and me?" I asked her.

She nodded.

"No." I lied, hating myself as I saw the disappointment darken in her eyes. "Why? Did you see something?"

"No." she said coldly and I could feel the anger building inside of her as she looked away. Predictably, that anger was directed towards me.

"Why are you here?" she asked looking back at me her eyes narrowed.

"Just making sure you're alright." I said shrugging.

"Well you didn't have to do it, I'm fine." She snapped.

"I can see that." I said.

"So you don't have a reason to be here."

"I guess not."

"Then leave." She said.

"Fine." I said standing up and climbing out onto the fire escape. I heard the window slam shut behind me, followed by a rattling as she closed the blinds.

I shook my head and went back into my room, only to hear a dull thud that shook the wall. It quickly followed by second, which caused one of my pictures to fall. It hit my desk, breaking the frame and shattering the glass.

I couldn't be sure, but if I had to guess what had just happened, Cali had thrown her daggers at the picture of her mother on the wall.

Cpov

After the door to the underworld was shut, things pretty much went back to normal. I spent my time how I usually did, fighting with my father, going to Max's track meets, and above all, avoiding Will's attempts to steer me down the 'right path.'

It had been a couple weeks since I'd seen Tyler, it was already October and he still hadn't come back. Rumor had it he'd been arrested for something at one of his crazy parties, but I wasn't sure I believed it. He'd been gone for this long before, my guess was that he was with his cousin, but I had to admit it was a little lonely without him around. None of his friends paid attention to me when he was gone which meant that both at school and at home I was alone.

I was thinking about this as I walked the track after one of Max's meets had ended.

Everyone had left but I really didn't want to go home. Well, I never wanted to go home, but today especially. My father was working which meant he was going to be in an especially bad mood.

"Still trying to talk to your brother?" I looked up to see Tyler leaning on the fence that separated the track and the bleachers, smirking at me.

"What do you want?" I asked harshly, trying not to show I was a little relieved to see him. He'd never let me live it down if he knew I'd missed him.

"Can't I just talk to you?"

"No."

His smirk grew, like I was a particularly stubborn three year old.

"You're determined to be in a bad mood today aren't you?" he asked jumping the fence and walked over to me. "Or are you still sulking about that girl at the club?"

"You were the one that was sulking." I said looking up at him.

"Is that so? Because the way I saw it was the second I showed interest in a couple of girls you went running off to your little boy scout Silverman."

I frowned. I hadn't realized at the time, but the timing did line up so that it would make it look like I was trying to make Tyler jealous.

"Is that what you think?" I said bemused.

"Parker it was nothing personal. You know that." He said putting his arm around me. I tried to pull it off but he kept it in place.

"I needed a place to crash, and you knew it." I said darkly deciding to go along with his train of thought. It was easier than explaining the truth.

"Well my bed was occupied."

"I know it was." I snapped.

"Cali." He said for once using my first name and I tried to look as if I was still angry, but I wasn't sure I managed it as he pulled me closer and whispered. "You know you're my favorite girl. Are you seriously jealous of her?"

"No." I said.

"Good because you know it didn't mean anything."

"I don't care about that." I said irritated and this time managing to throw him off. "But if I need a place to stay and you say I can stay with you, I need to be able to actually stay."

"It worked out didn't it?" he asked carelessly. "You got home didn't you?"

"Yeah, no thanks to you." I said acidly, while ignoring a pang of guilt that went through me as I remembered it was Will who had helped me get home that night. He wouldn't have been happy if he saw me with Tyler now.

"Oh stop acting like such a victim." He said rolling his eyes. "I know you want to be angry at the world because your Mom left and your Dad doesn't give a shit about you but we all got problems Parker." He said harshly. "And no one cares about yours."

I wanted to be angry, but I couldn't. I suddenly felt very small. Tyler had this way of making things he'd done to me seem like they were my fault and my anger was the problem, not him. As if I were the one bothering him and being out of line.

He smirked put his arm around me again.

"Besides, you can take care of yourself." He continued ruffling my hair and I pushed his hand away. "You're big girl, you're tough."

"That's not the point." I said stubbornly.

"Then what is the point?" he asked sounding bored.

"You ditched me when you knew I needed your help."

"So?" he asked with a laugh.

"So get lost."

"Alright Parker." He said impatiently, again like talking to me was for my benefit and a waste of his time. "I'm sorry. Are you happy now? Can we move past it?"

I looked at him. I knew he didn't mean it, and I knew he would do it again. But a part of me was really glad he was back. I was tired of being alone.

"I guess." I said even though it was against my better judgment. "So, why are you here?"

Tyler hated school so much he rarely even came when he as supposed to be here, let alone after hours.

"I told you." He said charismatically and against my better judgment I felt my guard slipping. "I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?" I asked suspiciously.

"Do you know why you're my favorite?" he asked avoiding the question but pulling me closer.

"Why?"

"Because you're the only girl I've met who I can depend on." He said smiling. "You don't freak out, or loose it. You just go with things. You're tough Parker. And I like that about you."

"So?"

"So it means I can trust you." He said suddenly serious. "Other girls, they're all over the place, loyalty's dead these days but you…" he smiled. "Nothing scares you enough to make you back down. That's the kind of person I need."

"For what?"

"For a favor."

"I knew it." I said angrily again managing to push him off. "You're only nice to me when you want something."

I almost winced when I realized that I sounded exactly like Will.

"Relax Parker." Tyler said putting his hands up. "You haven't even heard what I'm going to ask.

"Tyler you know I'm on probation."

"You're not going to get caught."

"Caught doing what?" I asked him darkly and he reached into his jacket.

"You remember my cousin right?" he asked pulling out a small plastic bag filled with small white pills.

"Yeah." I said nervously. His cousin was a gang banger that lived in the next town over.

"He managed to acquire these under let's say… questionable circumstances."

"He stole them?"

"It's probably better if you don't know." He said grinning slightly. "But anyways, he gave them to me to distribute but people are going to come looking for them and it's probably better if I don't have them on me for a while."

"And you want me to hold them for you?"

"That's the idea."

"What are they?" I asked hesitantly.

"Again it's better if you don't know. But I need someone who's going to be there for me even when things look rough. Someone who's going to stay calm, not loose their head."

"You know I don't do this kind of stuff." I said angrily. I might have done some questionable things, but this was over the line. If Max found out he would kill me.

"You don't have to do anything." He said quickly. "Just keep them for a while. And keep them far away from your boyfriend." He said raising an eyebrow. "Or any other do gooders for that matter."

I scowled.

"Will isn't my boyfriend."

"Whatever Parker." He said a little impatiently. "Will you do it?"

I hesitated.

"For how long?" I asked.

"Just for a couple of days." He said with a shrug. "It's no big deal really, just until I know it's clear."

I took the bag.

"That's my girl." He said sliding his arm around me again. "I told you Parker, you're my favorite. Nothing scares you."

"You're wrong." I said but he didn't hear me. He couldn't have any idea.


	17. Chapter 17

Cpov

Tyler took off pretty quickly after I'd agreed to help him, but he said he would 'visit' me in school so I didn't feel too bad about it. Maybe I would go this week after all.

I started walking home, and had just made it out of the school parking lot when I heard an all too familiar voice.

"Cali?"

I jumped and turned to see Will stepping out the back door of the changing rooms.

"Could this day get any worse?" I groaned.

First, I'd barely been able to talk to Max during the meet because his Mom was there, then Tyler comes and decides to make my life more complicated with his stupid 'favor,' and now, I ran into the very last person I wanted to see while I was still carrying the pills, well, except maybe a parole officer.

"Good to see you too." He said sarcastically.

"What are you still doing here?" I asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." He said suspiciously. "My coach asked me to stay behind after the meet. The finals of the season are coming up and since I'm the varsity captain he wanted to run the list of names he wanted to send to the qualifiers by me. Why are you here?"

I shrugged.

"Don't want to go home?" he guessed shrewdly.

"Do I ever?" I asked hostilely but he didn't rise to the provocation. Instead he looked concerned.

"What's got you in such a bad mood?" he asked.

"Why do you care?" I asked remembering what Tyler had said to me earlier.

"Am I not allowed to?"

"People don't care about other people's problems."

"What makes you say that?" he asked frowning.

"Because it's the truth."

"You know you have a very cynical view of the world Cali." He said putting his hands in his pockets as he started walking towards our usual route home.

"Forgive me but I don't think I'm suited to be an optimist like you."

"You know you can throw all the sarcasm you want at me." He said calmly. "But it's not going to make you feel any better."

"Oh I beg to differ." I said stubbornly.

"Is it working?" he asked looking down at me.

I didn't answer. The truth was no, but I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of admitting it.

"I didn't think so." He said looking back ahead of us as we walked down the street.

"You think you know a better way?" I asked him.

"I know it's a radical idea, but you could actually talk about what's bothering you." He said.

"To you?" I asked.

"Do you see anyone else here?"

"That's not happening." I said the bag in my pocket suddenly feeling much heavier than before. Like he would understand.

"Can't say I'm surprised." He said with a sigh. "Well if you don't want to talk about your problems, what do you want to talk about?"

I glared at him.

"Fine. Walk in silence. Doesn't matter to me." He said shrugging.

There was an awkward silence between us that I couldn't help but break.

"Is Max going to the qualifiers?" I asked. I'd picked up enough from watching Max's meets to know that the end of the fall season there was a final meet where each school sent their best runners to compete against each other to run at regionals. Those who made it entered a state wide tournament in the spring that, if you got far enough, eventually lead to Nationals, which Will had won the past two years.

"Right now he's an alternate." He said. "But coach says if he beats his best time in the next meet, he's going to consider sending him."

"What about you?" I asked knowing it was a stupid question the moment I said it and Will grinned.

"Nah," he said amused. "I didn't make the cut."

"And you lecture me about sarcasm…" I said moodily and he let out a laugh.

"Lighten up Cali." He said still chuckling. "Stop taking everything so seriously."

I looked at him, uncertain what to feel.

Will was one of only two people who weren't afraid of me when I was upset. The other was Tyler. Both of them were able to laugh at me when I was annoyed with them, but in very different ways. When Tyler laughed, it was because he didn't care. As if the idea that I thought my anger mattered to him was laughable. But it wasn't like that with Will. I didn't understand what it was, and I found it confusing.

"What?" he asked and I realized I'd been staring at him.

"Nothing." I said and he shrugged.

We turned on to our street in silence.

"So." I said looking as our apartment building. "How many drachmas do you want to bet that your girlfriend is waiting for you to get home?"

"What?" he asked confused and I rolled my eyes.

"Sadie."

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Tell her that." I said smirking. "She's totally in love with you."

"She is not." He said sounding distracted but then looking down at me suspiciously. "Besides how would you know? You barely talk to her. Or have you two been having sleepovers?"

"Don't even joke about that." I said darkly. "You know she hates me. But you are talking to the daughter of Aphrodite. I pick up on these things."

"Thought you didn't believe in love."

"I don't." I said shrugging. "But that doesn't mean others agree with me. And she wants the whole fairy tale romance with you."

"I don't think she'll be there." He said shaking his head. "I had a track meet today, that means that she would have had to have been waiting for hours-" he cut himself off as we walked through the door and sure enough, there Sadie was there.

"Pay up." I said snickering and he tossed me a gold coin which I easily caught as she started packing her bag. She'd started working on schoolwork in the lobby while she waited.

"Hey Will." She said smiling and then her eyes landed on me. "Oh. You're with Parker."

"Not for long." I assured her and, ducking Will's attempt to grab, me I scrambled to the elevator as Sadie tried to trap him in a conversation. She was in my year, so she'd probably pretend to need help with a subject she knew he'd already taken and they'd do their homework together because he was too nice to say no. She'd done it before, and at this rate, they might start dating out of sheer exposure to each other.

Irritation flashed through me and I jabbed the number five button and rode up alone. Of course Max would have loved for it to be me doing homework with him and trying to set myself up with him but it was all so pathetic. As if I'd want to spend any more time alone with him than I already did.

The elevator door opened and I was surprised to find Will already standing in the hall outside his front door. He must have taken the steps.

"Managed to shake her off did you?" I asked.

"Yeah." He said distractedly.

"What did private school want?" I asked him.

"Nothing really." He said sounding distracted. "She just asked if I wanted to go her homecoming with her."

"Oh." I said shortly. "What did you say?"

"I said I'd go."

"Really?" I asked in surprise feeling strange. Like the sudden shock you got when running into an unexpected obstacle in a familiar setting.

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked.

"No reason." I said still feeling weirdly out of sorts. "I just didn't peg her as your type."

"What do you know about my type?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

He had a point. I didn't know anything about girls he might have dated in the past, and Will hadn't really dated anyone since he'd moved here. So how was I supposed to know?

Sure lots of girls liked him and if he'd wanted them he'd have his choice of dates, but he never seemed all that interested. He was always too busy with school and sports.

I'd never put any thought into Will's love life but I guess on paper a guy like him with a girl like Sadie made sense. He was a jock, got good grades and was popular. She was pretty, the cheerleader type and a prep. Even still, the thought of seeing him with anyone, especially someone like Sadie, just seemed wrong. He might have been popular and an athlete, but that was only in the mortal world. There was a whole other side to him that she'd never be able to understand.

The real Will was a hero, who fought monsters, went on quests, and was constantly putting his life at risk. Could he really be interested in a mortal whose biggest problem was wondering which brand of eyeliner best brought out her eyes?

"I guess I don't know anything." I said eventually which was a first. Being a daughter of Aphrodite I usually had a dead on intuition about this sort of thing, but Will had always been an anomaly when it came to my powers. It wasn't unreasonable to think that he'd be different about this too. "I just didn't really see you going for Barbie that's all."

I found that I had a sudden, but very strong, desire to be alone. Or maybe just to be away from him.

I reached into my pocket to pull out my keys.

"I'll see you around." I muttered but then felt my heart stop when I felt my keys catch on something, then heard a gentle 'thud' as that thing hit the floor.

"I'll get it." Will said automatically bending down to pick up the object, but he froze when he saw the bag.

Ice flooded through my veins as he silently picked up the bag, and looked at it for several seconds as if he couldn't quite believe it was there.

I tried to back away but still without looking up, he grabbed my arm to prevent me from getting away

"Cali." He said quietly his voice cold.

"Yeah?" I asked nervously.

"How did you get this?" His hold on me had tightened, it was almost painful now. When he finally looked up, his expression was blank, but his eyes burned with fury.

"I found it." I lied automatically.

"Bullshit." He snarled. "Tyler gave it to you, didn't he?"

"No." I lied again.

"Why are you protecting him?" he asked in disgust and I winced as his grip tightened again, this time causing pain. He seemed to realize this because his expression changed from rage to shock and he let me go, taking a step back. As if he were afraid of getting too close to me.

I on the other hand couldn't move. A fear I'd never experienced spreading through me like a poison, paralyzing me. I'd never seen Will this angry before. It was terrifying.

"Do you even know what this is?" he asked and while his voice was calmer, it was shaking with the apparent effort it was taking to keep his anger in check.

I stared at him. Something inside me had momentarily broken.

"Cali!"

"No." I said quietly and this time it was the truth, but the way Will had asked me struck me as odd. I hesitated before asking. "Do you?"

He didn't answer, only put the bag of pills in his pocket and reached for his apartment door.

What are you doing?"

"Confiscating." He said his voice cold.

"You can't do that!" I said in horror. Tyler was going to kill me.

"Watch me." He growled.

"What is WRONG with you?" I said looking at Will in horror.

"I could ask you the same question." He said his voice rising as he was losing control of his anger again. "What the hell were you thinking Cali? I thought you were smarter than this! Do you know how dangerous carrying stuff like that is?"

"I thought-"

"Clearly not!" he shouted. "Because if you were thinking you wouldn't have taken it!"

"And what am I supposed to tell him when he wants it back?" I asked furiously. "I didn't buy all that. He's going to freak."

"You leave him to me." He said twisting his ring dangerously.

"No." I said in panic. "Will you can't hurt him."

"Why not?"

"Because he's my friend." I said furiously.

He looked at me, his features the picture of disgusted disbelief.

"Your friend?" he asked bitterly. "Cali, when has he ever acted like a friend to you?"

"I-I was just doing him a favor"

"Friends don't ask you favors that could get you killed." He said his voice so bitter, I couldn't begin to think of a response.

I watched as he walked into his apartment and slammed the door behind him, leaving me staring after him.

I'd known that Will would have been angry if he found out about the pills, but never had I imagined this. I mean, I know it wasn't the smartest thing I'd ever done, but it wasn't as if I was planning to take any of them, or sell them. So, it really wasn't that big of a deal.

But, in the back of my mind I'd heard the last words he'd said to me.

 _"Friends don't ask you favors that could get you killed."_

That was a bit extreme wasn't it? I mean, it was just a plastic bag filled with pills, it couldn't have been worth that much, could it? But if it wasn't that big of a deal why didn't Tyler keep them himself?

A surge of unease went through me as I remembered Will's expression as he'd asked.

 _"Do you even know what this is?"_

It was as if the contents of the bag had some sort of significance to him. But that was crazy. Why would it mean anything to Will? It was just a bag of drugs.

Unless…

Did Will know something I didn't?


	18. Chapter 18

Wpov

I couldn't sleep that night. Too many thoughts were racing around in my head. All of them were about Cali.

'How could se be so stupid?' I thought bitterly. 'What the hell was she thinking?'

I'd been looking out for Cali for two years now, and I'd seen her do some very stupid things, but never in a million years did I think that she would ever go this far.

Aphrodite was right, things with Cali were out of control, I needed to keep a closer watch on her. Well, on Tyler really. Because if anyone was going to convince her to do something stupid, it was him.

I opened my eyes and let them adjust to the darkness in my room then sat up.

The problem was, I couldn't be with Cali all the time. It just wasn't practical, besides, it was difficult enough to up excuses to be with her as much as I already was, but if I was around her even more… well, she'd start resorting to drastic measures.

I needed help.

But how?

How could I keep an eye on Cali at all times?

And the answer came to me, unpleasant as it was, I knew there was a way to make sure I knew if Cali was in trouble, even if I didn't like it.

I stood up.

I grabbed a jacket, put on my shoes, reached into my closet, and pulled out my bag.

I found it and quickly went though it's contents. Screw driver, wire cutters, flashlight, along with various other things I'd need tonight were all there. I zipped it up, shouldered it, then opened my window.

I climbed out onto the fire escape and glanced into Cali's window. She was home for once, asleep. Good, the last thing I needed was for her to be out and about messing things up. I stared at her for several seconds, noticing once again she looked happier when she was asleep.

'Get it together.' A voice in the back of my head said and I looked away. I had a job to do and this was going to take some time.

I climbed down the fire escape and looked around the parking lot.

"Which one do I want?" I asked softly looking at the cars. My heart started to pound. A familiar feeling of anxiety and adrenaline began to flood through me and I had to force myself to stay calm.

I swore I'd never do this again…

"Just this once." I said picking the Charger and bending down to inspect the lock. "I don't have a choice."

It didn't take long to hot wire the car. I'd done it plenty of times before, but it did take an hour to find them. They were in the abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of my hometown. Just one of their many hideouts, all members of the Chaos Crew, and just as I suspected, they didn't look happy to see me at all.

Whispers broke out as several angry faces turned towards me, each less friendly than the one before it.

"You've got a lot of nerve coming back here." One of them, a massive guy I remembered was named Christian said standing up aggressively and grabbing the front of my shirt.

"I came to talk to Jonathan." I said standing my ground.

Several of them laughed humorlessly, including Christian.

"Really? You came to talk to Jonathan huh?" he sneered, then reaching in to his belt and pulling out a knife. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick your ass right here and now."

"Because I have this." I said pulling the bag I'd taken from Cali out of my pocket and Christian let me go, his eyes narrowed. "I'm guessing you've been looking for it."

There was no way Cali could have known this if Tyler didn't tell her, but this wasn't an ordinary bag of drugs. It was a unique combination of a narcotic and hallucinogen that only this gang sold or knew how to make. It was super potent, highly addictive, and very hard to manufacture, which meant it was worth a lot of money.

"Where did you get that?" he asked as the whispering increased.

"Now, now." Said an amused voice and everyone turned to see a tall boy, a few years older than me, walking out of the shadows and into the beam of one of the few still working lights. He was taller than I remembered, almost as tall as me now, with dirty blonde hair and dark, cunning eyes that were focused on me, glittering with interest as he smirked. "Christian, you should know by now not to question Will, I mean, he's a legend for a reason isn't he? Somehow, no matter what kind of trouble he gets himself into, it just always seems to work out. Doesn't it?"

He reached out his hand expectantly and I tossed him the bag, knowing that I had no other choice.

"Well you just saved us a big head ache in trying to get this back." He said inspecting the contents. "But I seriously doubt you went to all this trouble just for old times sake. So," he said looking back at me. "What brings you back to us?"

"I need your help."

Several of them laughed, but Jonathan didn't.

"Why would we help you?" Christian sneered. "You left us remember?"

"Shut up Christian." Jonathan snapped and the entire room fell silent. Jonathan's eyes fell on the still running Charger outside. "Nice ride." He said with a grin. "Is it yours?"

"No."

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear." He said his smile growing. "Alright Will I'll make you a deal."

"What is it?" I asked uneasily. Despite the fact that he was the only person who didn't look as if he was ready to tear me to shreds, I knew that smile. It was dangerous, and it worried me more than any of the muscle heads in the room.

"I'll let you talk, if you let me drive."

While speeding downtown in a stolen vehicle was one of the dumbest things you can do, I was glad Jonathan had decided to separate our conversation from his gang members, but then again that was probably intentional. Jonathan never did anything without thinking it through. That was probably why he'd become in charge in my absence.

"So what is it you wanted to talk about Will?" he asked taking a hairpin turn that made the tires squeal.

"I told you I need your help."

"Well whatever you've gotten yourself into it must be bad." He said grinning, stomping down on the gas and I was pushed even further back into my seat. "If you're coming to us anyways. So what did you do?"

"I didn't do anything."

He snorted with laughter.

"Yeah ok." He said drifting around a corner, just narrowly avoiding a collision with a street light.

"Seriously I didn't. You know I went straight."

"Need I remind you I'm driving a stolen car…" he said raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, well I needed a set of wheels."

"Just like the old days isn't it?" he said amused.

"I try not to think about them."

"Then why are you here?" he asked turning into a parking lot and slamming on the breaks. He then looked at me and I saw his smile had faded. There was concern in his eyes. "While I personally was glad to hear you got your life together, you pissed a lot of people off when you left, and when you did, I thought you weren't coming back."

I paused for a moment, lost in thoughts of the past. Jonathan had been my best friend growing up. We'd done everything together. Including joining the gang. He was the person I stayed with when my Mom threw me out for joining. He was also the only person who'd supported my decision to get out. He flat out told me to leave while I had the chance and I had a feeling it was only his influence that had kept the others from coming after me.

"Have you heard of someone named Tyler Lang?" I asked him.

"Yeah." He said frowning. "His Ricky's cousin isn't he?"

"Who?"

"Ricky Lang, small time dealer that's been causing us a lot of trouble recently. Why?"

"I need you to keep an eye on him for me."

"Who? Tyler?" he asked looking confused.

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I can't tell you that." I said shaking my head.

"Will." He said grinning with a tone that said 'you know better'. "His cousin is one of our rivals, you can't just ask me to go messing with Ricky and not give me a good reason why."

I frowned. I really didn't want to say too much

I sighed and reached into my wallet.

"This is why." I said pulling out the picture of Cali her mother had given me when I'd agreed to protect her. It was enchanted so that it even though I'd had it for two years, it looked exactly like her today. It also was impossible for me to lose, no matter where I put it, it always ended up right back in my wallet. I'd thought it was kind of a weird magical item at first, but I'd actually used it a lot. No matter when or where I was, I always had a current picture of her to show to people to help me find her.

"Holy shit dude." He said taking the picture his mouth falling open slightly. "Is this your girlfriend?"

"No."

"Then give me her number."

I glared at him.

"Touchy subject I guess." He said raising his eyebrows. "Well if she's not your girlfriend who is she? What does she have to do with any of this?"

"I'm supposed to look after her and-"

"And this Tyler kid is trouble right?" he asked and I nodded.

"So. All of this." He said looking at me in disbelief. "You coming back, risking getting caught car jacking again, getting wrapped up in all this. All of this is about a girl?"

"It's not what you're thinking." I said darkly when he raised an eyebrow. "And it's not that. I promised her mother I'd look after her."

"So?"

"She's a friend of my Dads."

"I thought your Dad split on you." He said frowning.

"It's complicated. I kind of owe her, look I can't explain it." I said in frustration. "Will you help me or not?"

"I dunno Will," he said shaking his head.

"You owe me." I said shortly. This was true, a few years ago, we'd gotten into a fight with a few members of a rival gang and I'd saved his life.

"Yes, and if it was to save you, you know I would but this is different…"

"It's not actually." I said shaking my head.

"What do you mean?"

"Just assume that if anything happens to Cali, you're not going to have to worry about making things even between you and me anymore."

He didn't say anything, but I could tell from his expression that he knew what I meant.

"I'm not asking you to do anything other than keep an eye out, let me know if you see them together, if he's doing anything shady."

He looked at the picture and seemed to think for a moment.

"What'd you say this girl's name was? Cali?" he asked.

"Yeah, Cali Parker."

"You realize the only reason you're not dead right now, is because half the gang is scared of you, and the other half knows you saved my life right?"

I nodded.

"This girl, if she really is connected to Ricky's cousin, they're not going to like that."

"Yeah, I know."

"And the only person standing between them and her is you."

I thought I could see what he was leading up to, but I didn't interrupt as he continued.

"Will I might be in your debt, but you can't expect them to care about her. They respect me enough to let it slide when you turned up but if she gets in their way, there's nothing I can do. They're not going to let me shield another person, especially someone in with the Langs who's never done anything for me."

"Then stop protecting me." I said and I saw his jaw tighten. "If you want to make things even between us, make Cali the one who's off limits, not me."

"Let me get this straight." He said frowning. "You want to substitute her in for yourself for the life debt, exchange your life's safety, for hers?"

I nodded.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked seriously. "Is this girl really that important?"

I looked at the picture he was holding, in which Cali was wearing a rare, but genuine smile.

When this had first started, protecting her wasn't really that high up on my list of concerns. All I could think about was my mother and how happy she was in her new life with the husband of her dreams and her new perfect son. Her happiness and keeping that reality alive had always been my motivation. Every time I'd thought I'd had enough, when Aphrodite had threatened to take it all away, I managed to push through. But the amount of times she'd had to make these threats over the years and become less and less.

I'd been watching over Cali for so long now I felt as if I'd been doing it my entire life, protecting her had become second nature. And honestly, it wasn't my mother's happiness that caused me to make this decision. My top priority had truly become Cali's safety.

"Yes. I'm sure."

"I can't guarantee no one's going to come after you."

"Let them." As long as no one touched Cali, I wasn't afraid of anything they might try to do.

"Alright then." He said shaking his head and pulling out his phone. He took a picture of the photo of Cali, then wrote a very long text and sent it to several numbers along with the picture of Cali.

"That should get the word out quick enough." He said then grinned. "I'm guessing you'll need the car back."

"I should probably get it back to the parking lot before the people in my building find out it's gone. The owner might not know who did it, but a stolen car to my parents is pretty much a dead give away."

He sighed.

"You know I never thought I'd see the day when you were worried what your parents think."

"People change." I agreed as he pulled out onto the street and began driving back to the warehouse.

I looked at the photo of Cali one last time before putting it back in my wallet and wondering if she could.


	19. Chapter 19

Cpov

Tyler was furious when he found out I lost the pills. He ended up going back to his cousin's for and while I expected to be alone, I couldn't help but feel like all the time now I was being watched.

I couldn't explain it but it seemed like every time I went out, especially at night, I'd always seem to run into sketchy groups of guys. The type a girl would usually avoid especially when she was walking alone in the dark. While they didn't do or say anything to me, I couldn't help but feel a sense of unease whenever I spotted them. They all looked at me the same way, as if they knew who I was, which was ridiculous because I'd never seen any of them before.

Part of me wondered if they were members of Ricky's gang trying to freak me out after loosing the drugs, but that didn't seem right. If they really were that angry they would have tried something by now. So who were these guys? Or was I just being paranoid?

Their behavior wasn't the only thing that was strange however. Will had been acting differently as well. He was still always around, but he was far less annoying about it than usual. He didn't talk to me much, so I figured he was still really angry. Was he finally starting to give up on me too?

I was thinking about this as I walked through the building lobby only to find Sadie and Will walking out together, Sadie flirting pretty heavily, Will as oblivious as always. But he was always like this on days he had track meets, half the time he didn't hear anyone, he was in the zone.

Annoyed that I knew this, I decided I'd better get his attention because I didn't actually know when it started and being on time for Max's races was sort of my thing. It was the one thing I was better at then his mom who rarely showed up on time mainly because track meets were long and she got bored.

Today was the final meet before his Coach decided who was going to run in the qualifiers. I couldn't miss it.

"Will."

He immediately snapped back to the present and Sadie gave me a look of deepest loathing.

"What do you want?" she asked hostilely.

I ignored her but continued to look at Will.

"What time is the meet tonight?"

"Six. Why? Do you need a ride?"

"Why would I need a ride?" I asked raising an eyebrow. "School is like five seconds away."

"Because it's not at school." He said and I felt as if my stomach had fallen through the floor.

"What? Why not?" I asked quickly. Track meets were always at the school, I was counting on it. It was the reason I never missed them.

"The school needs the field tonight for a football game, so we've been moved to Chesterfield. The team's leaving together on an activity bus right after school."

Chesterfield was the nearest highschool to ours. It was a half an hour away by car. Not something I could walk.

"Great." I said bitterly. I didn't have a car, and I didn't even have Tyler for a ride. "How the hell am I supposed to get to Chesterfield?"

"You can get a ride on the bus with me." He suggested. "We're allowed to bring someone."

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Then you're not getting a ride." He said shrugging.

"I'll just go with Max."

"Only seniors can bring a friend with them." He said.

"We're not friends."

"Is that really what you want to focus on right now Cali?" he asked coolly. "Do you want a ride or not?"

"Fine." I said bitterly. "But what's the catch?" I knew Will was going to make me do something for this. He wasn't going to pass up an opportunity where I was in his debt.

"You have to let me help you with your homework for a week."

"That's not happening."

"Then should I tell Max you decided not to go?"

"No." I said quickly.

"Then you do need a ride?"

I glared at him. "Alright fine." I said crossing my arms over my chest and determinedly avoiding his eye.

"Excellent."

"But only a week." I said quickly. "Don't get used to it, this is a one time deal."

"I'll try not to loose any sleep over it." He said sarcastically.

Just then, a very irate Sadie cleared her throat loudly. We both jumped, and from the look on Will's face I knew I wasn't the only one who'd forgotten she was there.

"So Will. What do you say?"

"What? Oh-" he said looking a bit distracted. "Uh sure Sadie, that's fine."

"Great!" she said her annoyance vanishing instantly then to my surprise, and apparently Will's as well, she hugged him tightly then ran off to meet her mom in the parking lot to drive her to school.

"What was that all about?" I asked following Will as he opened the door that lead out to the street.

"Oh, she wanted to know if it was ok if we met up at her friend's house for pictures before her school's homecoming dance."

"Oh." I said blankly, feeling so many emotions go through me at once, I wasn't even sure if they were appropriate for the situation.

"You ok?" he asked uncertainly.

"What do you mean?"

"You're kind of the human equivalent of a mood ring Cali." He said frowning. "Your eyes change colors depending on how you feel, but right now I can't tell if you're angry or upset."

I looked at him. He was the only one other than Max to notice.

"I'm not upset." I said and it was true, I wasn't angry either. I didn't know what I felt. Maybe that was why he couldn't place it either.

"Alright." He said shrugging putting his hands in his jacket pockets and heading towards the exit of the parking lot.

Our walk to school was unusually silent. Normally, when forced to spend an extended period alone with him, Will attempt to use that time to try and convince me to do my homework or talk to my teachers about trying to catch up in class, but not today. He seemed lost in thought at the moment, and while I thought I'd be grateful for the lack of harassment it felt weird to walk with him and not talk.

All and all I was glad to see Max running up to me when we reached the school. It gave me something to think about other than Will.

"Cali," he said sounding out of breath skidding to a halt in front of me before the steps. "I don't know if you've heard but the meet-"

"It's at another school, yeah, Will told me." I said and Max looked to my left and noticed Will for the first time.

"Oh. Hey man." He said. Will nodded and Max turned back to me. "Anyways, look I know you always come to my meets but I'll understand if you don't make it this time."

"No, I'll be there." I said and his face brightened. "I'm getting a ride with…" but I couldn't say it. The truth was so unpleasant I had to start again. "I'm going with…"

"She's coming on the bus with me." Will said rolling his eyes.

"Oh." He said with an expression that could only be described as blank shock. "Wait really?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yeah. In exchange for the ride he's making me do my homework." I said starting to regret this decision when I saw Max's grin. He was never going to let me live this down.

The warning bell rang.

"Damn, I've got to go my class is on the other side of the building, I'll see you later." He gave me a fast hug, smiled at Will, then jogged up the steps and into the school.

Will spotted his friend Chris, who was walking with a few of the popular senior girls, waved at him, then turned to me and said.

"Meet me in the gym right after class ends. Bring your school stuff."

"You really expect me to find my textbooks by the end of the day?" I asked.

"Just bring them." He said shaking his head in exasperation.

"Fine." I muttered starting to walk to class.

"I'll see you later." He said and I watched as he started to over to his friends, who'd been looking at us. One of the girls said whispered something to her friends smirking, and they all laughed except for Chris who looked annoyed.

I had a feeling I knew the topic of their conversation.

I ignored them and walked into the school alone. I knew I shouldn't let it get to me. I was only doing this for Max and who cared what people like them thought? Still, if this was just the first reaction of Will's friends seeing me around him, I wasn't exactly looking forward to a bus ride with his team.

Wpov

"Just think about it." I said in frustration.

"I don't know."

"Yes you do."

"I don't."

"Just try."

"Can we move on?"

"Then you won't remember."

"How can I remember something I never knew!" Cali asked in fury then glared bitterly out the window. We were riding the bus to the track meet and I was trying to help Cali study for her English test on Elizabethan literature but so far it wasn't going very well. The past hour had been me asking her questions about authors and plot points, and her stubbornly repeating the same three words. I don't know.

"And I'm sick of people staring at me." She added angrily. "Can't you make them leave me alone? The way people keep looking back here, you'd think I'd sprouted an extra head."

"Just ignore them." I said shrugging. Over the years people had been developing their own theories as to why I always tried to help Cali, there had been some crazy rumors running a for a while, of course none of them were any where near as crazy than the truth, but for the most part, the majority of the school thought it was because I had a crush on her. A lot of people, especially my team, used to make fun of me for it, saying it was hopeless, but now she was actually here, sitting next to me, they couldn't seem to help themselves. They kept whispering about it and looking back at us, trying to figure out what was going on. I looked down at her textbook. "How long did the Elizabethan era last?"

"You've got the book, you tell me."

"I'm not the one with a test coming up." I said her trying my hardest not to sound as frustrated as I felt.

The thing I hated most about trying to help Cali in school wasn't her attitude, or stubbornness about the work. It was how easily discouraged she was. Cali was a smart person, but years of skipping had made her so lost when she tried to catch up, none of it made sense to her. After a while she assumed she too stupid to do it and gave up. Now, it felt as if I was the only person trying to convince her otherwise.

"What's the point Will?" she asked trying to sound annoyed but I could tell she was upset. She was leaning back with her knees propped against the seat in front of us and looked more defeated than I'd ever seen her. "I'm never going to learn it."

"You won't if you don't try."

"I can barely read the freakin plays and sonnets and stuff, how do you expect me to remember who wrote them or which characters represented what?" she glanced at me for a brief moment. "I'm not good at this stuff ok?" With a sigh she turned back to the window. "I'm not like you."

"You think I'm good at school?" I asked her incredulously.

"Well yeah, you get like straight A's don't you?" she said still not looking at me. "Max told me about your scholarship. You got a full ride right?"

"Yeah." I said awkwardly. "Only if I make it in."

"Of course you're going to make it in." she said and though I couldn't see her face, I could tell she was rolling her eyes. "You get good grades and you're crazy good at a sport. I'm sure you could get into any college you want. In fact, more are probably going to start asking you to join their team."

This thought unsettled me, but I decided to push it to the back of my mind.

"Anyways, who wrote A Midnight Summer's Dream?"

"Uhg who cares?" she asked putting her hands in her face.

"Your teacher."

"Screw her."

"Cali just guess." I said stubbornly. "It's not that hard."

"Shakespeare?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yeah."

She looked up in surprise. "Seriously?"

I nodded.

"Now who wrote-"

"Will if you ask me one more question about English I swear I'm going to throw you off this bus."

"Ok." I said in mock concern.

"You think I can't?" she asked quickly.

"I know you can't."

"You want to bet?" she asked sitting up straighter.

"I'd love to see you try."

But just then the bus came to a grinding halt and the air breaks went on making me jump. I looked out the window to see a massive brick building with several other buses lined up in front of it, with teams from the other schools filing out of them. They were all heading towards the track.

"I guess we're here." I said a little disconcerted. This always happened whenever Cali actually talked to me. Maybe it was because she was a daughter of Aphrodite, but it seemed as if I forgot the world around me whenever she was near.

"Figure that out all by yourself Sherlock?" she asked clearly not experiencing the same problem. "Move. I want to talk to Max."

But people were trying to get off the bus causing the row between the seats to be packed with bodies and athletic gear so she couldn't get to the front of the bus where he'd been sitting.

"Guess you're just going to have to walk in with me." I said.

"Wonderful." She muttered sarcastically shoving her textbook back into her book bag when I handed it to her and we made our way off the bus.

As we walked through the entrance to the track, I saw people whispering and pointing towards us. I'd forgotten how much attention Cali got from strangers. She was always beautiful, but being around her so much had caused the rest of the school and me to sort of get used to her. But I was reminded as nearly every head turned to stare just how much attention she tended to attract.

"God I hate this." She muttered pulling her hood up, staring directly in front of her and walking in. Several boys mouths had fallen open. When they recovered and showed signs of wanting to walk over to her I gave them a look that promised pain and they backed off.

"Looks like your girl's pretty popular." Chris muttered looking around uneasily as we followed her in. "You sure it was a good idea to bring her?"

"Max always runs better when she's watching." I said glancing around at the competition and then grinned. "Besides, she can distract the other teams."

"Watch it." Cali said making sure to smack the back of my head before heading off to find Max who'd disappeared with a few of his friends.

"Dammit Cali that hurt." I said rubbing the place she'd hit me but she gave me the finger and walked off.

The second she stepped away, my path was blocked by a tall boy with arrogant good looks and surfer style blonde hair. He was wearing the uniform of another school and the sort of smile that just made you think he probably deserved a punch in the face no matter what he might say.

"Yo, man is that your girlfriend?" He asked with a smirk and gesturing to Cali's retreating figure.

"No." I said stiffly.

"Thought not." He said his smirk growing as he looked me up and down. "A girl that hot wouldn't be caught dead with you."

"Watch your mouth." Chris said starting forward but I caught him.

"Don't." I said. "You'll get disqualified"

"That's what I thought. Though, it doesn't matter if you run or not. You're not going to win." He said arrogantly. "The name's Adam Blakefield if you haven't already guessed. That should mean something to you."

It did. Adam was the star runner from one of our rival school a few towns over. He'd transferred her from another state at the beginning of this year and had been beating everyone in pre-season meets. Our schools hadn't faced each other this season yet, but I knew he'd be running the same event as me.

"Anyways, don't bother worrying about the race. There's no point in running. Not when that Silverman kid is around here somewhere."

"You know I'm really not that worried about him." I said amused.

"Then you're a bigger idiot than I thought." He said. "Of course he doesn't stand a chance against me. You're all just running for second. Now if you'll excuse me." He said starting to walk away. "I think I'll go talk to your friend and make her day."

"What an asshole." Chris said in dark disbelief. "You should of let me hit him."

"He's not worth your time." I said watching him walk after Cali, feeling a grin coming on.

"Why do you look so happy?" he asked raising an eyebrow. "I thought stopping guys like that talking to Cali was sort of your thing."

"It is, but I've got a race to prepare for and besides, he'll get what's coming to him."

"What do you mean?" he asked confused.

"Have you ever actually seen someone try to hit on Cali?" I asked him curiously.

"No. Most people at school either think she's crazy or are too scared to talk to her."

"It doesn't usually go well." I said amused. "And she's already annoyed. What's in store for him is far worse than anything I could have done."


	20. Chapter 20

Cpov

It took me a few minutes to find Max. There were a lot of people walking around and I wasn't exactly tall.

I finally spotted him with a couple of friends at the concessions stand when I felt an arm slide around my waist and a voice said.

"You are far too beautiful to not know me."

"Are you serious?" I asked looking up at some arrogant wannabe California boy, who was smirking down at me.

"I know." He said confidently. "I look too good to be true but don't worry sweet heart," he winked and pulled me closer. "I'm real."

"Right." I said slowly while stepping out of his grip. "Bye."

"Don't be like that baby." He said following me as I continued to walk to the snacks.

"Leave me alone dude."

"You're feisty." He said with a laugh. "I like it."

"Get lost."

"Don't play hard to get." He said grabbing my arm and I froze. "It's not cute."

"Get your hands off of me." I said quietly.

"Make me." he jeered.

"Fine." I said calmly, then twisted out of his grip and turned, grabbing his wrist and forcing his arm behind his back. I then pushed him up against the wall of the ticket booth.

"What the- Ow" he said trying to shake me off but I pushed him harder against the wall twisting his arm just passed the point where I knew it would start to feel particularly unpleasant.

"Let's get something clear shall we?" I said coldly. "You touch me again, I'll kick your ass. You call me "sweet heart" or "baby" one more time, I'll kick your ass. In fact, if you so much as irritate me further in any single way, well, I think you get the picture. So why don't you just be a good little boy and run along," I said sweetly. "Before I change my mind and decide to break your arm."

I let him go, glaring at him.

"Bitch!" he said turning and taking a swing at me.

I easily dodged it, and punched him several times in the chest and stomach. He came at me again, and I took out his knees, then landed one final blow that threw him into the ground.

He let out a pitiful moan.

"What the hell are you?" he groaned.

"Irritated." I answered and I heard a shout of laughter.

I turned to see Will and Chris not ten feet away, doubled over, clutching their stomachs they were laughing so hard. I realized that they'd been watching the entire time.

"You're an ass Silverman." I said annoyed.

"That's Will?" the boy asked sitting up and looking at him.

"What did I do?" Will asked still laughing. "I didn't tell him to go after you."

I rolled my eyes and continued my way to the concession stand where Max was debating with his friends if he should buy a Gatorade before his race or not.

"I bet if your sister asked, that kid would give them to us for free." His best friend Colin said snickering.

"Yeah, he might even throw in a couple of Powerbars." Jeffery added.

"Anything else you two want to pimp me out for?" I asked putting my arms around them from behind and almost laughing at their horrified expressions.

"S-sory Cali." Colin stuttered.

"We were only kidding." Jeffery sputtered.

It was almost funny how terrified they were of me.

"Beat it. I want to talk to Max."

"Sure thing." Jeffery said and both boys sprinted back to the stands where Will and the others were talking before warm ups.

"You know you could be nice to them." Max said a little grumpily after he'd handed the nerdy looking boy at the cash box a dollar and received his drink.

"Can't risk it." I said shaking my head. "I've got a reputation to uphold."

"They're my friends." He said just as irritably.

"Then tell your friends to stop talking about me behind my back."

"Fine. But can you get me a power bar? I left my wallet in my locker. That was all I had."

I winked then looked at the boy at the counter, who'd been listening to our conversation. All it took was one smile. I didn't have to say a word.

"Here." He said groggily and shoving the box towards me. I took one for Max and one for myself, then we walked away before he realized what had happened.

"You've got a gift Cal." He said shaking his head and munching on the bar. "You know sometimes I think you have super powers."

I laughed uncomfortably and decided to change the subject.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better now that I've had something to eat." He said tearing off another chunk of the bar.

"Think you're going to win today?"

"I dunno." He said shrugging. "Will always says picture yourself winning, but run like you're in second."

"Why second?"

"Because if you're in first you might get lazy, but in second you think you can win. Makes you run just a little bit faster thinking you can get ahead."

"I guess that makes sense." I said frowning and looking at Will. "Well, for him anyways."

"Why are you so hard on him?" he asked suddenly.

"Who?"

"Will." He said. "He's nothing but nice to you and I bet if you weren't so closed off, you two would really get along."

"What makes you say that?"

"I dunno," he said shrugging. "There's something about you guys." He paused evidently trying to find the right words. "It's like you're both really different from everybody, but in the same way."

"Meaning?" I prompted again.

"Well even though you guys are like complete opposites, it's like you see the world the same way. Not like normal people. The way he acts during practice. A lot of time he reminds me of you."

"In what way?"

Again he hesitated. "Like I said I don't know but it's like you guys know something we don't. I see it sometimes when you guys talk to each other, you'll say stuff and it seems like it means more to you guys, or only you guys know what you're truly saying. And neither of you want attention, no matter how easy it is for you to get it. All the stuff most people care about, you guys just don't. It's like you've got other, more important things on your mind."

"I guess you're sort of right." I muttered. It was moments like these that I hated most about being a demigod. Monsters I could deal with, weird powers and odd accidents I could get used to. But feeling so disconnected from my brother who lived in an entirely safe mortal world, knowing I couldn't share with him who I really was just to keep him out of danger. Well, it made me hate belonging to the mythological world more than anything else could. He was my only true family, and all I did was lie to him.

"Do you think your parents were that way? And maybe that's why they were friends?"

"Max you know I don't like talking about my mom." I said warily remembering the last time he'd brought up the subject and our fight.

"I know. Will said she's the reason you don't believe in love."

"Don't talk to Will about me." I said irritated. The last thing I needed was them swapping stories, they could easily share lots of information to each other I didn't want the other to have.

"Well what else am I supposed to do?" he asked. "I'd rather talk to you, but you never want to talk about it."

"Fine." I said with a sigh. "What do you want to know?"

He hesitated.

"Is that true?"

"Is what true?"

"That you don't believe in love. Is it because your mom left Dad?"

I looked at him.

"Yes." I lied hating myself for it.

"But I mean, just because it didn't work out for them doesn't mean it's impossible. Look at Will's mom and his step-dad." He gestured towards the gate where Karen and Dave were walking in, holding hands and waving to Will. "How can you look at them and say it doesn't exist?" he asked me.

"Because it doesn't." I said softly. People in love were just the play things of my mother, disillusioned with her power until she got bored of them and they realized the wonderful emotion that they thought they'd been feeling from the very core of their soul was just a finite sensation. A shallow distraction while she gained absolute control of their lives and put them through pain and torment for her amusement. And if she decided to take it away, they were left with nothing but misery. "And I'd rather know the truth, than be happy and ignorant."

"The truth? What truth?"

But suddenly, we heard a shout of. "Max! Hurry up! Your group's already started warm ups!"

He swore.

"I'll see you later Cal." He said then tore off after his group.

I walked back to the stands alone, trying to ignore the several boys trying to catch my eye and sat on a bench near the center with no one on it. A few girls were giggling about Will a couple rows below but I ignored them. It was all so stupid the way they talked about him. He wasn't that great. So what if he got good grades and was talented and everyone loved him and he was attractive. No one was that perfect. It wasn't possible. There had to be something wrong with him.

Just then, I remembered his tattoo and what he'd said about his mother kicking him out. Well, that certainly wasn't something that a superstar perfect golden boy would have gotten himself into. Will must have been a different person before he moved here. In spite of myself, I was curious as to who that person was. What was he like? And what had he done that was so stupid even his caring and devoted mother who was taking a shift at the snack bar right now would have wanted him out?

The meet went by slowly. They always took hours but this one was especially bad because I couldn't walk home after Max was done, and every time Will wasn't racing, he was forcing me to do work.

I would have refused to do it if he wasn't my ride home, but I had to admit, things made more sense when he explained them. He understood where the ADHD and dyslexia gave me problems and gave me tips on how to get passed the setbacks. It might have been slow, but this was the first time I felt as if I was actually making progress in my schoolwork, and what was even more amazing, was that I understood it. I actually smiled when he'd told me I'd gotten the right answer to the different types of ions.

"See Cali, it's not as bad as you thought it was going to be." He said going over my chemistry questions.

"My brain hurts."

"That's because you never use it." He said and I heard Max who had been walking passed choke on his Gatorade as he laughed. "This is the most use it's had in years probably. These answers are right by the way." He said handing me back the paper.

"They are?"

"Yeah you've just misspelled a couple things." He said pointing out a few words. "But don't sound so surprised Cali. You're smart."

I was horrified to feel myself blush.

"Uh thanks." I said not looking at him. No one had ever said that to me before.

"Silverman, you're up!" the coach shouted and Will stood.

"Look over the flash cards." He said gesturing towards the chemical formulas I was supposed to have memorized by Friday. "I'm testing you on them when I get back."

"Won't you be too tired?' I asked irritated.

"Well." He said with a playful smile. "I am my fathers son."

I grinned slightly, then noticed that several people were looking at Will confused. I now understood what Max had meant about Will and I seeming to understand each other when no one else did.

He started to walk towards the track and before I knew it I was saying.

"Will?"

"Yeah?" he asked turning around.

"Good luck."

He looked shocked for a second, but then gave me a very different smile than I was used to.

"Thanks."

He turned and walked towards the starting line where he was in the lane next to the idiot runner who'd tried to hit on me earlier.

"What was that?"

I looked over to see Max looking at me in suspicion.

"What was what?" I asked.

"You wished him luck."

"So?"

"You NEVER do that."

"What's it to you?" I asked defensively and he smiled.

"Are you starting to not hate him?"

"No." I said feeling my cheeks burn.

"Uh huh." He said knowingly.

"Shut up Max." I said irritated and looking away. Will was back in that strange intensely focused mode. Seeming to be unaware of anything but the race ahead.

"Should be a close match." Max said also looking at the track. "See that guy Will's next too?"

"Yeah I beat him up." I said.

He gave me a strange look but continued his sentence.

"Apparently he's some new hotshot that's just transferred this year. With the times he was running during the preseason people were thinking that he might actually beat Will."

I let out a laugh.

"What?" Max asked.

"That kid doesn't have a chance." I said remembering the way he'd been acting as if he was tough then dropped like a rock. Will was a demigod, the strongest and best fighter at camp, with the most successful missions and quests, and the fastest even against his siblings, children of the fastest god on Olympus.

"What makes you say that?"

"Because I know Will." I said. He didn't have to act tough like that idiot racing against him. He was a hero, the real thing. "He doesn't let anything get in his way."

The starting gun let out a sharp bang and each boy took off like a bullet. I watched unsurprised as Will took the lead, closely followed by the boy Max had pointed out to me. The second boy started to pull up about half way around the track, but just as they were neck and neck and it looked as if he was about to pass Will, something seemed to come over Will and suddenly, he looked as if he'd been shot out of a cannon. He sprinted forward leaving the second boy in the dust and crossed the finish line before most of them had even gotten three quarters of the way there.

"Told you." I said as Max's eyes were wide.

"I've never seen him run like that before." He said following me back to my books. "I mean he's fast but Jesus he's never- what are you doing?"

"Looking at these damned flashcards." I said picking the index cards up and flipping them one by one. "It doesn't matter if he won. He's still going to yell at me if I don't memorize at least one."

Wpov

"That's my boy!" my coach shouted punching a fist into the air as I walked back to the team, breathing hard. "You just set a state record!"

"What?" I said confused but was then buried under a dog pile of my team mates.

"Good job man!"

"That was insane!"

"Did you see the look on Blakefeild's face?" Chris asked laughing. He'd been in the same race and had come in fourth, but he didn't look bitter about it. In fact, he was grinning. "Aw look he's sulking." He said in a babying tone and pointing towards the other end of the track where Adam was pushing away his teammates and walking into the changing rooms.

They all gave me high fives and slapped me on the back as I managed to break free of their grip and made my way towards the water.

"That was incredible!" Max said his eyes wide. "How did you do that?"

"Practice." I said grinning but the truth was, I wasn't exactly sure what had happened. All I knew was that the second I'd seen Cali watching me, something had happened, and then I was at the finish line.

"You've never run like that at practice before." He challenged.

'Yeah well,' I thought tersely. 'I'd never noticed your sister watching me before.'

But instead I went with.

"Guess it was luck then."

"Yeah, I'm sure." I heard Chris say with a smirk.

Max drifted off to line up for his next race and Chris said.

"You saw your girl watching, didn't you?"

"You really need to stop calling her that." I said avoiding the question.

"She's coming over here by the way."

He gave me a significant look then slipped away as Cali approached the water bottles.

"I don't understand bonds." She said in frustration. "What is a valance electron? It doesn't explain…"

I looked at her, stunned.

"What?" she asked defensively.

"You're asking me for help?"

"No." she said her cheeks flushing. "I just thought, well, since you're making me do it anyways, I might as well speed up the process."

"I dunno." I said grinning. "It sounds like you're asking for help to me."

"Go run five thousand laps." She said scowling.

"Alright, alright I won't give you a hard time." I said rolling my eyes. "Go get your stuff. I'll help you study."

She went to go grab her things when I looked up into the stands to see my mother and Dave sitting next to each other. My mother gave me the thumbs up her eyes shining with pride, but Dave on the other hand looked worried. I saw him glance at Cali, then back at me his expression clear.

'You're playing with fire.'

"I just wish they had pictures you know?" Cali said flipping through her chemistry book, and I looked back at her. "It would just make it so much easier."

"I can draw some out for you." I said and she looked a little relieved.

"Alright and can you explain ionic bonding to me too? I get the other ones but there's something about it I just can't seem to grasp."

"Sure." I said distracted as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. How was it possible to look that beautiful while having your nose buried in a chemistry book? "Anything you want."


	21. Chapter 21

Cpov

"Good work Cali." I looked up from texting Max to see my chemistry teacher Miss Cadwell had passed back last class's test. I stared at it in amazement to see that in the top right corner right above my name, was a B with a minus symbol next to it.

"I passed?" I asked in disbelief while opening the stapled test to see a row of check marks among various diagrams and written questions. The boy behind me groaned as she passed him his test.

"Now the average of this test was very poor. Most of the class failed, so I'll be taking test corrections with your homework to be turned in by Monday, those of you who got higher than a C plus, are excused from this assignment."

There was an outbreak of angry muttering and when I looked around, it seemed as if most of the class would have to do the extra work.

The bell rang and there was a general scraping of chairs as students got out of their seats and shuffled towards the door.

"Hold on a moment Cali." Cadwell said as I put my book bag over my shoulder and made to make my way to the hall.

"Yeah?" I asked stopping just before the class room door feeling a little uneasy. The last time she'd held me after class, she'd given me detention for a week, all because she'd caught me trying to sneak out the window. Was that really necessary?

"I wanted to talk about your test." She was a tall woman, thin, with long curly black hair and dark eyes that were usually narrowed at me in dislike but they were perfectly friendly at the moment. I found it unsettling.

"I didn't cheat." I said automatically.

"I know you didn't." she said kindly. "I watched you take the test. No. I wanted to know what you'd done to prepare."

"Will helped me study." I muttered.

"Will?" she asked confused clearing thinking I meant someone in my class.

"Silverman," I explained. "The senior."

Her reaction was predictable. All the teachers loved Will.

"Oh did he?" she said her tone brightening, which I found even more disconcerting. She'd never smiled at me before. The closest thing I'd seen was the way her lip twitched whenever she caught me sleeping in class. "Well that makes sense. He was one of my best students last year."

"I bet he was." I mumbled.

"Are you going to keep studying with him?" she asked curiously.

I gave a non-committal shrug.

"Well you should." She said with an approving nod. "He's a very smart boy. I could talk to him if you like, see if we can't set up a program to get you completely caught up."

"I don't think that's in the cards for me." I said hesitantly.

"Cali." She said in a serious tone. "I'm mean it. With some tutoring and a little effort, you could pass this class, you could even get an A. It's not too late."

"I don't think so." I said avoiding her gaze.

"But Cali-"

"Thanks for the offer." I said cutting her off. "But the whole tutoring and trying thing just isn't for me. Maybe next year."

I walked out of class before she could say another word.

As I walked down the hall I thought. Was it possible for me to pass chemistry? Two days ago I would have said no. It was too hard, there were too many names and numbers and formulas to memorize and get right, but now… I looked at the small red B. Could I?

"You got your test back?"

I jumped violently and turned pulling my daggers, which were chopsticks holding my hair back today, and holding them in weapon form but the person in front of me was Will.

"Calm down Cali." He said with a laugh. "It's just me."

"Yeah." I said trying to hide the paper but it was too late he'd already grabbed it.

"This is awesome." He said grinning.

"What is?" and I was horrified to see Max fall out of the crowd of students moving down the hallway.

"Cali got a B on her test."

"That's great!" Max said looking through the papers.

"It isn't that great."

"No Cali it is." Will said seriously and I looked up. "This is the hardest test she gives all year, nearly every one in my class failed it."

"Yeah and what did you get?" I asked suspiciously. "A 100? More than that after the curve?"

"I got a 38." he said shrugging.

"You're kidding." I said in disbelief.

"I'm not. And that was one of the highest grades. You probably were the only person who passed."

"So Cali's like a genius." Max said grinning.

"Don't you have someone else to annoy?" I asked him and he grinned.

"Yes actually." He said. "Tammy Burns invited me to sit at her table for lunch today."

"I've no idea who that is."

"One of the popular freshmen." Will said automatically.

"Well then you'd better go." I said in mock concern and Max laughed.

"I know right? I'll see you later Cal."

I watched him go feeling slightly uneasy.

"How do we know this Tammy girl isn't a monster in disguise?"

"Calm down overly protective sister." He said as we both started walking to the cafeteria. We had the same lunch block.

"I'm just saying…"

"Tammy Burns is not going to eat your little brother." He said rolling his eyes. "How is it I've fought more monsters than you yet you're the one that's dangerously paranoid?"

"I resent that." I said darkly. "Since when has my paranoia put anyone in danger?"

"Well you've got a point there." He said amused.

There was an awkward silence between us as we passed the main office and a few people did a double take, clearly wondering why Will and I were walking together. I wished Tyler were here. He'd attract less attention.

"I got an A on my English test." I said, unsure why I felt the need to share this with him.

"That's great." He said and he sounded sincere but I didn't trust it. I couldn't help but feel an 'I told you so' was in the near future. "So, when are you coming over tonight?"

"What?"

"That was a deal," he said matter of factly. "I let you ride with me, and you have to let me help you study for a week."

"You're seriously holding me to that?" I asked appalled.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Why do you care?" I asked incredulously.

"I just do." He said not looking me in the eye. "Isn't that enough?"

"No."

"Cali why does it matter?" he asked in what was almost a groan. "You got a good grade on your tests, isn't that what you want?"

"I don't care about my grades, why do you?"

"Why can't you just accept the fact that you're a person who is capable of being cared about?"

"Because I'm not."

"Why do you say that?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. Did I really need to answer that question?

"Just because you have a bad past doesn't mean you're not worth caring about Cali." He said quietly.

"Says Mr. Perfect." I said bitterly.

"You know you always call me that." He said frowning. "But do you ever think you don't know me as well as you think you do?"

"Are you trying to tell me you're not the smart track star popular boy that everyone loves?"

"No."

"Then you don't have any ground to stand on." I said tersely and we entered through the doors. I looked around and felt my stomach sink. Despite the hundred or so students all crammed into the long tables that ran through out the dingy room, my table was empty. All of Tyler's friends were gone.

"You can sit with me." Will offered noticing my hesitation.

"You should be so lucky." I said annoyed. "I think I'll just skip lunch today."

"And go where?" he asked skeptically.

"Freebie Friday." I said. "The movie theater has a buy one get one ticket free deal during school hours."

"Oh yeah?" he asked raising an eyebrow. "And who's going to go with you?"

"I'll make up some excuse to get Max out, it won't be hard."

"Max has practice, if he's not at school he can't come to training which means he can't run if he's picked to go to the qualifiers."

"Fine, I'll grab someone off the street I don't care." I said shrugging.

"You can't skip."

"Who's stopping me?" I asked with a laugh.

"Me."

I gave him an irritated expression.

"Who do you think you are? My father?"

"You're going to French Cali." He said referencing my next class.

"You do realize that the only reason I take that class, is because I can already speak French right?" I asked him. In addition to speaking English, and being biologically wired to learn Greek, all children of Aphrodite were fluent in French as it was considered the language of love.

It was the one class I could skip as much as wanted, and still get an A.

"That's not the point." He said. "And you are going even if I have to drag you there myself."

"I'd love to see you try."

"You asked for it."

"What-hey!"

The next thing I knew Will had picked me up and thrown me over his shoulder.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I shouted attracting everyone's attention in the room. "Put me down!"

He ignored me and started walking towards the language department of the school.

"Will," I said pounding on his back. "I swear to Zeus if you don't put me down I'll-"

"Mr. Silverman." said a man cutting me off and I looked up to see the Principal Edwards, a short good natured man with neat white hair and dark eyes behind thick glasses that magnified them several times. "What on earth are you doing?"

Will turned to face our principal leaving me to look back of the deserted hall.

"I caught a truant sir." He said as casually as if he were talking about the weather. "I was just escorting her to her next class."

"Oh. Oh I see." He said sounding highly amused. "Carry on then."

"Thank you, sir."

"Are you KIDDING me?" I said in disbelief as Will continued to walk down the hall. "Will let me go right now!"

"Alright."

Suddenly, the floor was rushing at me at high speed.

I shouted, and threw my arms out in front of me, but the impact never came. Will had easily caught me again and he easily pulled me back over his shoulder so he was carrying me with both arms and I was forced to look up at him. He was grinning.

"Why?" I asked glaring at him.

"You're fun to mess with." He said his smile growing but eventually putting me down. "Now if you're really not going to eat, go wait in your French classroom. Or next time, you land on your face."


	22. Chapter 22

Wpov

With Tyler out of the way, getting Cali to do things like go to class and do her homework was much easier than usual. She was also more emotionally stable. Over the past few days she'd avoided getting into fights with her father, detention from her teachers, or any major freak-outs that caused her to check out both physically and mentally.

I knew she didn't like being at school, but when I passed her in the halls, she didn't seem nearly as agitated as she usually was. Max was ecstatic, I often saw him talking with her between classes and even when people bothered him about her he was able to ignore them.

But nothing made me realize how much she had changed until I saw her one morning, standing alone before classes, leaning against the wall by the freshman lockers. She was watching two freshman students with apparent interest.

I didn't know why this attracted my attention at first, she wasn't doing anything remarkable, but at the same time I found I couldn't look away. Something was different.

It took me a few seconds before I realized what it was. She was smiling. But it wasn't sarcastic, or smug, or the kind of smile she wore when she knew she could get you to do whatever she wanted. Whatever she was smiling about, it was making her genuinely happy. That had never happened at school.

Completely forgetting that I was supposed to meet my coach before class, I walked over to investigate.

"You look happy." I said and she looked up.

"Hey." She said and for once she didn't look annoyed to see me.

"What are you doing?"

"See that girl over there?" she asked pointing to a short girl with chin length dark hair, and rectangular glasses. I didn't know her name, but I'd seen her at a few track meets and walking with Max in the halls. She was talking to a boy who was rather taller than her with short brown hair and light blue eyes. I recognized him to be Colin, Max's best friend and a runner on the JV squad.

"What about her?" I asked.

"That's Max's friend Kayla Yim. He was bullied in middle school for his height before he had his growth spurt, and she was the one who always stood up for him. She's had a crush on Colin for a while now."

"Ok," I said not entirely sure where she was going with this, but interested all the same. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"That night when we closed the door to the Underworld, it got me thinking." She said. "If I could work that spell, then I could probably manipulate the Mist right?"

"I guess that makes sense."

"I was right." She said. "I'm not that good at it yet, but I've been practicing. And I wanted to try something."

Then, without explanation, she straightened up and walked towards the freshman and several things happened at once.

Things seemed to slow down around her as she walked and the world entered into a dream like shimmering light. Unnoticed to the couple she passed, Cali took a rose from the bouquet a boy was giving his girlfriend as he asked her to our upcoming autumn formal, then managed to slip it in Colin's hand without him realizing as he continued to speak to Kayla. As she passed Kayla, her image shimmered and suddenly her glasses disappeared. Her jeans and hoodie were replaced with a pretty blue dress with matching heels, and though she'd been wearing no make up before, her features were now flawless.

Cali walked back to me, and the world went back to the proper speed. The effect was immediate. Colin's mouth fell open slightly, and his expression was similar to one I'd expect if someone had just smacked him in the back of the head with a two by four.

"How did you do that?" I asked her in amazement.

"What the clothes and the make up?" she asked.

I nodded.

"We all can do that." She said with a shrug and I knew she meant her siblings, the children of Aphrodite. "I just needed the Mist to make sure no one noticed the change. If all goes well he should be asking her in about three… two..." she pointed and I looked up to see Kayla blushing furiously, but also wearing bright smile as she nodded and accepted the rose Colin was holding out to her. "Max better hurry up." She said adjusting her book bag turning away from the couple. "Otherwise he's going to be the only one of his friends who doesn't have a date."

"Whoa, wait is that what just happened?" I asked jogging after Cali who'd started walking down the hall as if what she'd done was as natural breathing. "You just made him ask her to the dance?"

"I didn't make him do anything." She said. "If they weren't right for each other, he wouldn't have asked."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"Because that right there wasn't just a costume change." She said cryptically. "Kayla is a genuinely good person, so I made her as beautiful on the outside as she is on the inside."

"What do you mean?"

"Guys often times don't realize how beautiful a girl can be just by being who she is, even if she's standing right in front of him. Sometimes they need a little help."

"So you literally brought out her inner beauty?" I asked.

"If that's how you want to think about it I guess." She said putting her hands in her pockets.

"And because he found it attractive, they've got the potential to fall in love?" I continued utterly amazed.

"Love doesn't exist." She said shaking her head. "It's something my mother uses to control mortals for her own entertainment. And usually I wouldn't get involved…" she hesitated looking conflicted. "But she stood up for Max, and if Colin makes her happy, I guess I can over look it this time."

"Do you ever wonder what you would look like if someone did that to you?" I asked and the corner of her lip rose into a jaded smile.

"That power brings out the best in people Will." She said sounding slightly amused. "I'm not exactly a good person."

I looked back at Kayla who, whenever I'd seen her, had always seemed quiet and shy, but was now smiling brighter than ever before.

"I dunno, you made Kayla pretty happy." I pointed out.

"That's different." She said shaking her head. "She helped my brother."

"Yeah but you didn't have to help her." I said. "I think you might be nicer than you give yourself credit for. There's no need to be so hard on yourself."

"Ironic coming from you." She said then frowned when she glanced at the clock on the wall right above the lockers. "Don't you have some sort of meeting this morning?"

I froze.

"Damn it you're right." I said looking at the clock. I was supposed to meet my coach five minutes ago. "I'll see you around." I muttered then started running towards the athletic department.

"Sorry coach." I said a minute later stepping into his office to find him sitting on his computer. "I didn't forget I just-"

"It's alright Will." He said waving away my explanation. "Just sit down. I saw you with Cali earlier, everyone knows how easily you get distracted when you're with your girlfriend."

"Cali's not my-" I started but he cut me off.

"You just keep telling yourself that." He said knowingly and I was too tired of correcting people to bother arguing. "Anyways, I need you to get these," he said holding out a stack of envelopes. "To everyone who's running in the qualifiers, including your little protégé." He said giving me a significant look.

"You're letting Max run?" I asked in disbelief. He might have been fast, but still… a freshman competing at this level was almost unheard of.

"Of course, he's had excellent times all season," he said as I took the envelopes. "That being said, he's still a freshman, so he's going to need all the help he can get. Don't let him get out of shape."

"Alright." I said standing up. "Is there anything else you need?"

"Nope." He said turning back to his computer. "I'll see you at practice."

"Ok." I said reaching for the door.

"Wait, Will there is one more thing." He said and I looked back at him.

"Yeah?"

He smirked.

"Tell your girlfriend I say hi."

I rolled my eyes and I heard him laughing to himself as I shut the door.

…

Cali was right. After I'd broken the state record in my last race I got tons of letters, all from colleges who wanted me to join their team and the craziest thing was, that they all were offering scholarships.

"Look what I've got." My mother said in a singsong voice a few days after the race as she held up three new letters, all of them from state universities. "Oh hello Cali."

She'd just entered the apartment to see Cali and I sitting with our books spread out over the dining room table.

"Hi." Cali said a little awkwardly. She'd been like this ever since the first night she'd come over, very shy and extremely quite. I couldn't understand it. At school she didn't give a damn what adults thought, but when it came to my parents, she didn't seem to want to speak. It was almost as if she were afraid something bad was going to happen.

"How was your day?" she asked and Cali looked even more wary, like she wasn't sure how she was supposed to react to this question.

"Fine."

"Nothing exciting happen?" my mother asked good naturedly and Cali looked at me as if to ask, 'Is she for real?'

"Mom, we're trying to study."

"Oh right don't mind me." She said quickly. "I just think it's so nice you two are spending time together. It's not every day you find out you move in right next door to another demigod."

Cali's eyes went wide, but before she could say anything, Dave walked in through the front door.

"Karen, did you get the mail?"

"Yep!" she said waving the letters. "Look what came for Will!" she finished excitedly.

"Excellent. Hey I thought we might be sending you an offer soon." He said grinning holding up a letter that came from his university. "You couldn't ask for a better school." he said giving me a significant look.

"Will, can go where ever he wants to go dear." Said my mom. "What about you Cali, where do you want to go to school?"

"Cali's a junior." I said shooting her a 'butt out' look that was apparently lost on Dave.

"So it's the perfect time to look." Dave said casually. "Is there any particular field you want to study?"

Cali's expression was priceless. She looked like a deer caught in headlights. She had no idea what to say.

"Well there's still time to figure that out." Dave said heartily when he realized that Cali had no answer for him. "But you'd better start thinking about it now."

Again Cali looked a little lost for words.

"Will what do you guys want?" my mother asked while opening the fridge. "We've got chicken, I could throw together some spaghetti and meat balls, we still have a freezer pizzas that Dave hasn't managed to burn yet." She said and I could tell by her tone that she was smiling slightly.

Dave let out a laugh and went to go change.

"What do you want?" I asked Cali who looked confused.

"What do you mean?"

"What do you want for dinner?"

"You mean we're eating with them?" she asked incredulously.

"Why wouldn't we?" I asked frowning slightly. The past two days we'd been studying my mother and Dave had been home late and Cali hadn't eaten with us. Apparently she hadn't realized that that wasn't a regular occurrence.

"I guess pasta." She said looking at my mother.

"I'm sorry?" She said emerging from the fridge again and looking at Cali. "What was that dear?"

"She wants spaghetti." I said.

"If it isn't too much trouble." Cali added and I stared at her. Since when did Cali care about stuff like that?

"My dad always said that pasta was too much work to make when I wanted it. He said it was like cooking three dinners with the pasta, and the sauce and the meat balls." She explained when she caught my expression

"It's no trouble at all dear." My mother said looking slightly sad but then smiled when Cali looked at her. "Is there anything else you want? Like a drink? Milk? Soda? Juice?"

"You have juice?" she asked looking a little excited now.

"Grape, orange, or mango pineapple?" my mother asked. "We also have lemonade if you consider that juice."

Cali looked stunned at the selection.

"Lemonade."

She brought us both glasses of lemonade and Cali almost smiled.

"Thanks." She said hesitantly, watching my mother warily as if she was waiting for her to start shouting.

"Oh Will." She said on the way back to the kitchen. "Don't forget to make sure your suit still fits. For next week."

"What's next week?" Cali asked automatically.

"Homecoming." I said a little awkwardly, wishing I could read her expression.

"He's going with that Sadie girl on the second floor." My mother said cluelessly from the kitchen.

"Oh." Cali said shortly.

She looked as if she didn't care, but Cali's eyes never lied and they had turned just the slightest bit greener.

Was she angry?

I didn't get to dwell on this however because my mother said.

"Will set the table."

I stood and was surprised to see Cali stand too.

"You don't have to help." I said but she ignored me and started walking to the cabinets. "Alright." I said softly and followed her.

Dave came out just as we were putting down the knives and took his usual spot next to my mom's seat, and I sat across from him while Cali took the spot next to mine.

When the food was laid out on the table and all of us were sitting together it was distinctly awkward. This was the longest Cali had ever spent with my parents and while my mother looked perfectly at ease, she was the only one.

"Are you going to camp over winter break?" My mother asked Cali curiously.

"I don't think so." she said shaking her head not meeting her eyes.

"Why not?" mom asked in surprised.

Cali mumbled something about not fitting in in her cabin anymore, which of course made perfect since to my mother but Dave said.

"Well you're never going to gain anything by avoiding them. You should go. Will loves camp."

It was true. After a rocky start and very few friends the first year, moving schools also gave me a fresh start at camp, and after going on a few quests and missions, I really began to like it.

"It's a bit different for him." Cali muttered. "He actually gets along with his sib- cabin mates." She correctly quickly.

Dave noticed the sudden change in vocabulary but didn't challenge it.

"I noticed your father isn't home." He said frowning suddenly. "I haven't seen him in the past few days. Where is he?"

"Probably working." Cali said shrugging and taking a bite of pasta.

"You mean you don't know?" Dave asked adjusting his glasses in alarm.

"Not really." She said shrugging again looking unconcerned.

I saw my parents exchange a look and I knew from their expressions that whatever they were thinking, they'd discussed it before.

"Cali?" My mother asked hesitantly.

"Yeah?"

"How often does your father leave you home alone like this?"

Immediately Cali's expression went blank, and her eyes hardened, as if something inside her had shut down.

"Does it matter?" she asked quietly her eyes flashing, and this time there was no mistaking it, they were definitely green in anger.

"I see." Said Dave and Cali stood.

"I should get going." She said suddenly.

"Cali-" I started but she cut me off.

"Thank you for dinner."

"But…" my mother started but she never finished. Cali had already grabbed her things and started towards the door.

"Why would you bring that up?" I asked them angrily while running after her. "Cali, wait."

I caught up with her in the hall.

"Cali I'm sorry," I said catching her arm but she pulled it away.

"What my father does is none of their business." She said angrily. "I can take care of myself."

"I know you can." I said. "But they don't get that, they're just worried."

"Well no one asked them!" she shouted, but she didn't sound angry. In fact, she sounded scared. "And no one asked you! So leave me alone."

"Please just come back for dinner."

"No."

"But-"

"Will I don't belong in there." She said suddenly sounding tired. "The whole happy nuclear family thing that does their homework together and talks about their day just isn't my life." She sighed. "I belong with your family about as much as I do with mine at camp."

"So you choose to have none?" I asked her.

"I have Max." she said unlocking her door and walking into the dark apartment. "That's all I need."

I watched the door shut and stood there for ten full seconds before I went back into my apartment. When I made it back to the dining room, I saw that my parents were already in mid conversation about what they should do about Cali.

"-getting worse, we can't ignore it any longer." My mother said.

"It's not our business." Dave said.

"Still we should do something."

"It's not going to work." I said dully and they jumped.

"What do you mean?" my mother said while Dave looked awkward.

"Cali's not going anywhere if she can't bring Max, and you know how she is." I said giving my mother a significant look. "She gets her way. You try and get someone to help her, she'll be back in a week, and she'll be pissed."

They had no answer to this.

"We can't do nothing." My mother said quietly.

"You can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped." Dave said matter of factly, looking at me as he spoke. "No matter how hard you try."


	23. Chapter 23

Wpov

'Why does it always have to be like this?' I thought bitterly as I spotted Cali who looked at me, then without a word continued walking down the hall. Every time I started thinking things were getting better for her, something happened, and any progress she made she threw away.

This was the first time I'd seen her in school since she'd stormed out of my apartment, and I could already tell from her expression that she wasn't planning on staying.

Max was furious with her again. He couldn't understand what had gone wrong and if history was any indication of the current situation, Cali wasn't likely to explain.

I heard her and her father fighting on a regular basis, she spent most nights wandering around on her own, and worst of all, Tyler was back in the picture and he was an even bigger problem than ever.

I didn't know where he'd been for the past couple of weeks, but when he came back, it was like everything that I'd worked for had never happened. Cali was back to sneaking out, skipping classes, and walking the very fine line between the occasional suspension and being outright expelled. By the time Halloween rolled around, she was as out of control as she ever was.

Maybe it was because I was so close to getting her to turn her life around, maybe it was because I saw how tortured Max was to see his sister like this again, or maybe it was because I just hated Tyler's stupid face, but every time I saw the guy I just wanted to slam him into a locker. Face first. Repeatedly.

He knew it too. Every time I walked by he'd put his arm around her, make her laugh, and convince her to do something incredibly stupid. All the while wearing that arrogant smirk that made me want to pay him back with pain.

"Just kick his ass." Chris suggested as we spotted him hanging by her locker, leaning far to close to her, and glancing at me every few seconds or so.

"And what? Give her an excuse to hate me and go running after him to make him feel better? No thank you." I said bitterly.

"I'll never understand girls." He said shaking his head. "Why do they always want a disaster? But I guess she's a disaster too, so, maybe to her it makes sense."

"She's not a disaster." I muttered wondering if even I believed that was true anymore.

"Will, I respect that you want to help her and all, but if you don't think that girl is not one cut break cable away from veering off a cliff, then you're in denial. And guess who's the scissors?"

"And what do expect me to do about it?" I asked. "It's not like I can make him leave her alone."

"I'm not saying you have to do anything." He said shrugging. "But it's not like you to give up like this. That and," he gestured towards Max who'd just entered the hallway and froze when he spotted Tyler with his sister. "I think you've noticed it too, but Max is about to snap."

I did notice. Usually, Max was able to get over whatever Cali was going through, he wasn't very happy about it, but eventually things worked out between them. Not this time however. The day Tyler had come back, and he'd seen them together, something had changed. He'd refused to speak to her, I saw him ignoring any time she called or texted, even when she'd shown up to training, determined to force him to talk, he'd refused to even look at her.

"It won't be long before he does something stupid." He finished.

As if to stress this point, Tyler put his arm around Cali, and I saw the book bag that Max had been carrying on one shoulder fell to the ground.

"Get off my sister!" He shouted and everyone's head turned towards him as he tackled Tyler to the ground.

Both Chris and I swore and started running after them.

"What the hell?" Tyler said easily shoving Max off him and into the row of lockers that lined the wall.

"Leave her alone!" Max yelled scrambling to his feet and lunging after Tyler again, but Tyler, who was both taller and outweighed him, easily caught the blow.

Several people had crowded around them now, and someone had started the chant "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Teachers were trying to push their way through and just as Tyler drew back his fist…

Chris grabbed Tyler and pulled him away while I grabbed a hold of Max, restraining him.

"Let me go!" he shouted while I heard Chris say, "Chill out man." to Tyler.

"Don't be an idiot." I said as Max struggled to try and throw me off. "Do you want to get suspended?"

"I don't care!" he shouted furiously. "I'm going to kill him!"

"Go on little man." Tyler said with a cruel smirk. "I'd love to see you try."

"Keep your mouth shut. Or you'll deal with me." I said glaring at him and he suddenly looked a lot less confident.

"Whatever." He said resentfully as several people started to whisper. "I'll see you around Parker." He continued looking at Cali who seemed frozen in shock. "Try to keep control of the boy scouts will you?"

He gave us one last sneer and pushed his way out of the crowd just as the first few teachers managed to break through.

"What's going on?" Mr. Green, the vice principal and senior disciplinarian at our school, shouted. He was a tall man with short dark hair, broad shoulders, and an intimidating presence.

"Nothing." I said, as the muttering crowd disbanded, none of them wanting to get punished by Mr. Green. "Max and Tyler just had a little misunderstanding." I finished letting go of Max who glared at me then turned to his sister, only to notice her looking after Tyler.

"I can't believe you." He said incredulously.

She looked back at him, alarmed his expression.

"After everything he's done, you're worried about HIM?" he asked, cold fury creeping into his tone.

She didn't answer. Her expression was unreadable, but her eyes were a stormy blue. She was upset.

"You're never going to change are you?" he asked his voice shaking now.

Again no reply.

"You're pathetic." He said his voice cold and bitter. "After all this you're just going to running after him like you always do!"

"Max-" she started reaching out towards him.

"No, don't touch me!" he shouted pushing her away. "You know what Cali, I'm done! Don't even bother to show up for the qualifiers. I don't want you there."

"What?" she asked in shock.

"Just leave me alone."

He grabbed his book bag and walked away, leaving Cali to stare after him. Her face was expressionless, but I saw something behind her eyes shatter. They were darker than I'd ever seen them.

"Alright, everyone get back to class." Mr. Green said to the stragglers as the bell rang, but Cali didn't move.

"Cali," I started not even sure what to say but she shook her head.

"Don't." she said quietly. "Just…."

But she never finished the sentence, lost and looking as if she wasn't quite sure where she was or what was happening, Cali started walking towards the nearest exit.

"Where do you think you're going?" Mr. Green asked angrily.

She didn't answer.

"Callista Parker. If you take one more step towards that door you'll be suspended."

She stopped, but she didn't face him.

"Alright." Mr. Green said in a controlled tone. "Now turn around and go back to class."

"Mr. Green?" she said coolly and I felt my stomach tighten. I'd heard that tone before and I knew it could mean nothing good.

"Yes?" he asked clearly thinking along the same lines.

"Fuck off." She said, then pushed open the door and walked out of the school.

Cpov

The school suspended me for a week for my 'insubordinate behavior', not that I would have shown up anyways. If Max wasn't speaking to me, I had no reason to go.

There was a bright side though, because of the suspension I wasn't allowed to be on school property, which meant Will couldn't bother me to go.

The next week went by in sort of a haze. Any time my Dad was home, I was with Tyler and his friends, but when Friday rolled around he said he needed to go his cousin's house to set up a party so I was forced to go home.

I'd just entered the lobby when I ran into Sadie who looked distraught.

"No you can't cancel!" she said desperately. "I need her tonight!"

She was on her cell phone and clearly, who ever she was talking to was giving her bad news.

"Alright, alright." She said running her fingers through her hair. "Well is there anyone else?"

A pause.

"Alright, I'll just have to find someone else then."

She hung up the phone and let out a frustrated little shout, then spotted me.

"Problem?" I asked her.

"Not one you'd understand." She spat bitterly. "Why are you here?"

"I live here."

"Yeah but you're never actually here." She said. "What are you pretending you have a farther who cares about you?"

I ignored this and continued making my way towards the elevators.

"Where are you going?" she asked clearly not finished with pouring her anger out on me.

"As much as I love being yelled at for things that aren't my fault." I said sarcastically. "I've got better things to do than listen to you make fun of my home life."

She had the decency to look embarrassed.

"Alright I'm sorry." She said not looking at me. "It's just. It's hard not to be angry when the lady who was supposed to do my hair and make up tonight cancels because her kid got the flu and no one can replace her, then you walk in here looking perfect as always…"

I shifted uncomfortably.

She sighed and put her head in her hands.

"Now what am I going to do?"

"Why do you need hair and make up done?" I asked. I knew Sadie kept up with her appearance but I highly doubted that she had a professional do it every day.

"It's homecoming." She said dejectedly. "I was supposed to be getting ready by now, but I just don't know how I'm going to get anything done in time."

"I'll do it." I said taking us both surprise.

"What?" she said her eyes wide.

'Yeah.' I thought in shock. 'What?'

Where did that come from?

I thought back. Sadie reminded me of a girl I'd met years ago, in a pageant. Her mother hadn't been able to come, and her father had no idea what to do with her hair or make up and she'd been so upset. I'd felt bad for the girl, knowing what it was like to miss your mom on a pageant day, when it was supposed to be all about you and you were supposed to feel like a star. She had the same sad blue eyes.

I'd offered to help her and found out that as a daughter of Aphrodite I had talent with this sort of thing. I'd been helping people ever since, in my cabin, at camp, and in pageants, until I gave all of that up of course.

"You would?" she asked her eyes going even wider.

"Uh yeah." I said wondering why I was going along with this, maybe it was another horrible side effect of being a daughter of Aphrodite. I wasn't able to turn down a makeover.

"But you don't wear make up."

"I used to." I said shortly. "Trust me you'll look good."

She hesitated for a moment then said. "Oh my god Cali thank you thank you thank you!"

She tackled me into a hug.

"No, don't," I spluttered. "Sadie, air!"

"I'm sorry." She said letting go of me but grabbing my hand. "Let's go." She said dragging me to the elevators. "We've only got three hours until Will's supposed to be here."

'Only?' I thought, but then we entered the elevator and she started jabbering.

"You've GOT to see my dress it's so cute, oh my god you're going to die."

We got out on the second floor and she lead me down the hall until we reached her apartment. It was pretty normal looking until we reached her room, and my eyes were assaulted by an explosion of pink.

"Isn't it great?" she asked misinterpreting my expression of horror at her walls. Everything, the carpet, her bed, her mirror and picture frames, even her desk was shades of pink ranging form baby to hot.

"All my make up is in here." She said pulling out a huge pink case the size of my school bag, "Hair spray and gels are on the desk, and my curling iron is in that drawer!"

It took about ten minutes for Sadie to get changed into her dress, in the mean time I took stock of her make up and thought about what I wanted to do for her hair.

She stepped out and I was surprised to see that unlike everything else she owned, her dress wasn't pink. It was blue, short with a fitted top that synched around her waste and then flared out to just above her knee, with a few rhinestones along the top and belt. She wore matching heels as well as silver earrings and bracelets.

"Isn't it adorable?" she asked excitedly while taking a seat in front of her mirror and I plugged the curling iron in. Her hair was long which meant that an updo would take a lot of work and was most likely going to fall by the end of the night. So I decided to leave her hair down.

"I didn't know you knew anything about girl stuff." she chatted happily as I curled her hair lightly causing it fall into soft waves I solidified with her hair spray.

"Not many people do."

"Not that you really need to but still… with all the baggy clothes I thought you kind of hated this stuff."

I did, but I decided it was best not to say something like that while I was holding a burning hot cylinder right next to her scalp.

"So is Will a good dancer?" she asked suddenly.

"I dunno." I said frowning. I'd forgotten she was going with Will tonight. It was still so strange to me.

"I bet he is. He's going to look so hot tonight. I've never seen him in a suit."

I tuned her out occasionally nodding or saying. "Yeah." Or "Sure." When she paused for breath. I didn't really have to think as I worked. My hands seemed to have a mind of their own as they grabbed brushes and hairpins and eyeliner.

Finally, after a little under an hour, I was finished.

"Oh my god." She said touching the mirror apparently unable to recognize herself. "I can't believe this. How come you never do this to yourself?"

I shrugged for some reason not wanting to look at her.

"Well I should probably go."

"Go?" Sadie said sounding disappointed.

"Well yeah, I'm done."

"Oh. Alright." She said and she genuinely seemed sorry to see me leave.

I started to walk out of the room.

"Cali?"

"Yeah?" I asked looking back at her and she smiled.

"You know, you're a lot nicer than I thought." She said looking a little embarrassed by what she was saying, but also determined to say it. "Usually, girls that look like you. They're horrible."

"Well, maybe you shouldn't judge a book by its cover." I said shrugging. "I'll see you around."

I'd made it to the front door, then opened I to see someone already standing there.

"What are you doing here?" Will asked confused but I was momentarily unable to speak. I never thought I'd say this, but Sadie was right. Will looked extremely handsome in a dark suit with a white shirt and a blue tie that matched the dress Sadie had been wearing.

I was horrified to feel myself blush. This was the first time he'd spoken to me since I'd walked out on him and school, and while he didn't look angry, I could tell that last week was on his mind.

Before I could answer Sadie had come running down the hall.

"Will?" she said confused. "What are you doing here so early?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to get something to eat before pictures." He said.

I felt distinctly awkward.

"Yeah sure." She said smiling brightly. "Let me just go get my purse."

She dashed back down the hall.

"So what are you doing here?" Will asked.

"I was emergency hair and make up." I said shrugging.

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you see all of that?" I asked him incredulously while gesturing to my face and then hair. "It took me like an hour."

"Honestly." He said quietly and giving me a strange look. "I didn't notice."

"Back!" Sadie announced excitedly and grabbed his hand. "C'mon Will let's go! See you Cali! Thanks for the help!"

She dragged him to the elevators leaving me alone in the doorway.

How could Will not have noticed? I mean guys were oblivious yes, but no one was that bad.

'Maybe he was looking at something else.' A rational voice said in the back of my mind.

'Or maybe someONE else.' Said another voice, this one smaller, almost… hopeful?

'No.' I thought stubbornly. It wasn't hopeful, just curious. But still why did I care?

I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and looked down to see a text form Tyler.

'Party tonight. Cousin's House. Be there'

I thought about Will. He'd be gone for most of the night, he wouldn't be able to stop me. Not to mention he was with Sadie. What did he care where I went?

Anger spiked through me.

Why shouldn't I go? The alternative was try and sneak back into my own house tonight when my father was too drunk to notice.

More anger.

I typed. 'be there in 20.'


	24. Chapter 24

Thank you for the reviews! This is actually the longest story I've ever written but I almost took it down because I didn't think there was any interest so I really appreciate the feed back! Anyways hope you enjoy!

...

Wpov

Homecoming lasted much longer than I expected, we didn't leave the school until midnight. Sadie's parents were out of town for the weekend so we went back to her apartment with some of her friends.

We were supposed to be watching a movie, but Sadie and I were the only ones who were really paying attention. It was about two in the morning and people had either passed out or disappeared to a quiet room to make out with their dates.

"So tonight was fun." Sadie said a little hesitantly and I broke away from the clichéd action scene where the hero of the story saves the love interest from a building that was about to explode.

It was dark in the room, the only light coming from the glowing TV screen, but I could see she was looking at me.

"Yeah." I said honestly. "I had a good time."

It was nice to have a night out for once. The past few years my life had been school, practice, and Cali, I'd almost forgotten what it was like to have a little fun.

"Do you think you might want to do it again?" she asked and this time there was a definite hopefulness in her tone.

"I-" I started but it was my turn to hesitate.

I'd never taken Cali very seriously when she said that Sadie had a crush on me. But after her several attempts to flirt with me tonight, it was obvious that she had been right. And I wasn't sure if that was something I wanted to encourage, but I couldn't deny that I had enjoyed my time with her. Did I want to do this again?

I was shocked when I realized a part of me wanted to say yes.

I didn't know why I was surprised really. Sadie was pretty, she was smart and fun. Sure it had been annoying when she'd been showing me off to her friends, but I had to admit, it was nice to spend sometime with a girl that wasn't Cali. Someone who I knew didn't hate me depending on the day.

Aphrodite crossed my mind. What we she think about this?

"Is it Cali?" Sadie asked dejectedly when I didn't answer.

"What?"

"All the boys like her." She said looking away.

"It's not like that." I said shaking my head.

"So then what's the problem?" she asked looking a little hurt.

"I don't know, I just-" but I was cut off by her lips pressing against mine.

I was so shocked I didn't move for a second, and Sadie took this as an invitation to keep going. She pushed me back on the sofa and leaned over me, her lips still pressed against mine.

My brain went into over drive. What was happening? I still wasn't sure if I wanted this or not. But why wouldn't I?

What was the problem? It was no big deal right? Aphrodite was the goddess of love? So, she'd want me to have a girlfriend. As long as I was still protecting Cali, what did she care?

Sadie leaned closer to me and for a brief moment, I didn't care. I didn't care about Cali, or what she was up to or who she was with. And it was nice. To finally have a moment where my world didn't revolve around a girl who was so frustrating.

Anger surged through me and I pulled Sadie closer.

What was I doing? Did I really want this? Or was I just trying to make Cali pay?

'She wouldn't care.' A bitter voice said in the back of my mind. 'If anything, she'd be glad for you to have a distraction to keep you off her back.'

Sadie giggled and slid her arms around my neck, and just as things were getting heated we were interrupted by a jarring song blasting from the speaker of my phone.

"Who is calling you this late?" Sadie asked irritated as I pulled it out of my pocket. I glanced at the screen and my blood went cold when I read the name 'Jonathan' that was now on my screen.

"I've got to take this." I said sitting up so quickly she nearly fell off the couch.

"Can't you let it go to voicemail?" she asked sounding a little disappointed.

"No." I said stiffly and walked out of the room.

I waited until I was out of earshot, then click "answer".

"This better be important." I whispered angrily. "I told you not to call unless-"

"Unless it was important. I know." The voice said evenly. "But you told me to tell you if I heard anything about that girl you're looking out for right?"

I froze.

"Is she with you?" I asked in horror.

"No. But Ricky's throwing a party over here and some of the boys saw her and his cousin Tyler together, Christian and the others are still really pissed about what Ricky and Tyler did and they're planning to pay the party a visit. Shits about to go down."

I swore.

"Yeah I thought you'd say that..."

"I've got to go. Thanks for the call."

"Now we're even."

We hung up and I immediately started making my way to the door.

"Will?"

It was Sadie and her footsteps were getting louder as she walked closer to the hallway.

What had I been thinking? There was no way Cali would have allowed me the time to have a girlfriend. She didn't care about me or what I wanted. She did whatever she liked consequences be damned and didn't care about the people who cared about her.

Feeling a great sense of loss, I opened the door and stepped out of the apartment.

Cpov

Tyler ended up dragging me to the party of the century at his cousin's house in the next town over. And when I said party of the century, I mean it. It was insane. Music blasted from every room, which were lit by neon lights, everyone was drunk an hour in and that had been four hours ago. It was now nearly three AM and I had to admit, I was pretty bored.

I wandered from the drinks table shooting down every guy who walked my way before he could even get the chance to speak to me. I didn't know anyone at this party, and Tyler had disappeared with a girl a half an hour ago.

"Hey pretty lady." Some drunken idiot said trying to grab me around the waist but I easily twisted his arm and forced him against the wall.

"Touch me again and I'll break it off." I said acidly. "And I'm not talking about your arm."

"Jesus that bitch is crazy!" He said scampering off with his boys and I rolled my eyes.

"You know you're a little small to be so violent." Another, more sober voice said and I turned to see a tall boy with dirty blonde hair giving me a sly smile, his dark eyes looking at me with interest. "And far too pretty."

I glared at him.

"You can relax." He said his smile turning into something of a smirk. "I'm not trying to hit on you. I'm not an idiot, but the fact you took down a guy about twice your size and a matter of seconds means you're the person I'm looking for."

"What are you talking about?" I asked annoyed. That was the worst pick up line I've ever heard.

"You must be the infamous Cali Parker."

"Who are you?" I asked my eyes narrowing. There were many members of Ricky's gang here that knew of me that I'd never met before, but he didn't seem to be one of them. "Have we met?"

"No, we haven't, but my name's not important. What's important is that you need to leave. Now."

"Why?"

He didn't answer at first only gestured for me to follow him and started walking towards the front door. I hesitated for a moment, but then curiosity got the better of me and I followed him out of the house into the chilly night.

"Alright, what do you want?" I asked him.

"As you might have guessed, I'm not exactly one of Ricky's friends." He said and I knew by that he meant gang members. "But my friends however aren't happy with him, he took something of ours," he continued and I remembered the bag of pills that Will had freaked out about. "And it's probably best if you're not here when they stop by."

"Why should I believe you?" I asked him suspiciously. "How do you even know who I am?"

"We have a mutual acquaintance." He said cryptically, however I couldn't help noticing the tattoo going down his arm, bold gothic letters that spelled out the word.

"Chaos?" I asked quietly and I felt my entire body tense as cold realization spread throughout me. There was only one other person who I'd seen with that tattoo. "Wait, do you mean-"

"Parker, what are you doing out here?" I turned to see Tyler had left whatever girl he'd run off with and was walking towards no name and me. His eyes narrowed. "Who's this?"

The boy ignored him.

"Time's running out." He said, then turned and vanished as he walked away from the house down the dark street.

I didn't know why, but his words scared me. If he really did know Will, then he probably wasn't lying.

"What was that about?" Tyler asked with a scoff.

"I'm going home." I said shaking my head.

"Why?" he asked sounding confused.

"I don't want to be here."

"Don't tell me it was something that guy said," he said in disbelief.

"Does it matter?"

"Parker, you can't be serious." He said rolling his eyes. "Are you really going to let one nut job scare you like that?"

"You can go back if you want to." I said stubbornly and turning to follow the stranger down the street. "But I'm going home."

"Wait, you can't leave yet." He said quickly putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Since when do you care?" I asked him suspiciously. Less than five minutes ago he was happily ignoring me for a number of intoxicated girls.

"Because I need you here."

"If you're bored go find a girl to sleep with." I said darkly.

"That's not what I meant." He said quietly.

"Then what are you talking about?"

He hesitated, as if he didn't really admit what he was about to say.

"Unless, you start explaining I'm going home."

"Look, I need you here because I need you to talk to someone."

"What do you mean?" I asked but I could feel anger building inside of me. I thought I saw the direction that this was headed.

"Well there are people who are not as forgiving about you loosing that bag as I am. And they're pretty pissed about what happened. Rumor has it they're going to try and get even tonight. So I figured if anyone could talk them out of it, it would be you."

I felt something inside of me shatter, as if my entire body had been turned to ice and then dropped onto the pavement.

"You knew?" I asked quietly the fury building inside me. "You knew something was going to happen tonight, and you thought you'd just throw me in the middle of it?"

"Cali, calm down."

"No!" I shouted pushing him away from me. "I can't believe you!"

"It's not as bad as it sounds." He said reaching for me again.

"Leave me alone!"

I turned and started to walk away when I spotted three looming figures in the darkness.

Tyler swore.

"Well what do we have here?" A sinister voice asked and suddenly three very big men, each looking to be Tyler's age or older, tattooed, and wearing vicious smiles stepped into the light from the house. It was one in the center that had spoken.

"Sorry to interrupt your fight with your boyfriend darling. But we have some business to attend with him." The one on the right said and I felt my heart skip a beat when I saw each of them was holding a gun.

"So this is how you thought you'd avoid a scene Tyler?" The middle one continued. "You thought we wouldn't hurt a pretty little girl?"

"Look I don't want any trouble." Tyler said backing away.

"Well then you shouldn't have started it." The biggest of the three continued taking an aggressive step forward.

"Is it really worth all this?"

"You picked the wrong people to steal from." He said grinning cruelly while holding up the weapon.

"Wait." The one of the left said taking a step forward. "Hold on Christian."

"What?" the one called Christian snapped angrily.

"Look at the girl." He said pointing towards me.

"What about her?" he asked irritated. "She's hot, so what?"

"No he's right." The one on the right said stepping closer as well as if he were trying to get a better look at me. "Girl, what's your name?"

"Why?" I asked my heart pounding. Could we get out of this?

"Her name is Cali." Another, familiar voice said from behind us and I turned to see Will, his arms crossed over his chest, and he was glaring at the men with a hatred I'd never seen in him before. He looked capable of murder. "Cali Parker. And she's leaving. Now."

None of the men responded, each of them were looking at Will, their expression ranging from unease, to anger, and even fear. The one in the center, Christian, had lowered his weapon.

"Let's go." Will said grabbing my shoulder.

"What's-"

"Now." He growled making it clear that this was not up for discussion.

"What about the him?" Christian asked nodding towards Tyler as Will steered me away.

"Do what you want with him, I couldn't care less." Will said coldly, with an expression I didn't recognize. He didn't look like Will at all. It wasn't possible for the perfect golden boy I lived next to to look so heartless.

"Excellent." Christian continued his smile returning and I was forced away as they stepped closer to Tyler.

"Will-" I started but he cut me off

"Don't say anything Cali." He said his voice dangerously quiet.

"You have to help him." I said quickly.

"I don't have to do anything."

"But-"

"It's his own fault. He deserves it." he spat. "Thinking he could get you to talk them out of killing him."

"Killing him?" I asked softly, my blood running cold.

"Yes." He said acidly. "They're going to kill him."

Panic began to fill me.

"But they listened to you." I said quickly turning towards him. "You could do something, stop them."

"Yeah I probably could." He said cutting me off, still in that alarmingly calm tone.

"Then go, stop them before they-"

"I don't want to." He said and there was no trace of mercy in his tone. It was utterly devoid of emotion. As was his expression. This wasn't Will who I was talking to. I didn't even know who this was.

"Please." I said turning to look at him. I knew my charmspeak wouldn't work on him and he was angry, but no matter how angry I was at Tyler, I couldn't do nothing.

He stopped and looked at me, his expression unreadable.

"You're seriously asking me to do something for him?" he asked in disbelief and I could hear the anger in his voice. His calm was slipping. "After everything he's done?"

I nodded.

"Cali, he put you in danger." Will said his voice shaking with rage.

"I know." I said looking down quickly then back up at him. "But please don't let them hurt him."

Silence.

"For the love of the Gods Cali." He said furiously. "Go wait in the car." He gestured towards an Aston Martin that was parked outside a town house complex on the other side of the street.

"But what if it's-"

"It's unlocked." He said cryptically then turned to walk back to the group.

I wanted to watch what he was going to do but as if he could sense me he said. "Car. Now."

"Fine." I said and started to walk back to the car.

He was right, it was unlocked which I felt wasn't a coincidence and when I looked back at the group of boys, Tyler and Will were already walking away. Christian and his cronies looked angry, but they didn't follow. Instead, they made their way into the party, and I heard several screams and people started pouring out of the house from all exits.

The minute it took for them to get to the car felt like an eternity but eventually Will and Tyler made it. I opened the door and tried to check on Tyler but Will stood between us.

"Get back in the car." He said.

"What about Tyler?" I asked. "Is he ok?"

"He's fine." Will said stiffly. "For now."

"For now?"

But my question was answered when Will turned and punched Tyler so hard there was a crack an I was sure he'd broken his jaw.

He let out a shout of pain and hit the ground hard.

"Stay away from Cali." He said his voice soft and dangerous as he bent down next to Tyler and grabbed his face so they were forced to make eye contact. "If you ever put her in danger again, they'll be back and I don't think I'll find it in my heart to be so forgiving."

He then dropped Tyler and with one look, I knew we were leaving.

I glanced at Tyler a final time, but followed Will back to the car. He was in the drivers seat and it was running by the time I opened the passenger side door. The look he gave me was clear.

'No questions.'

"Seat belt." He ordered and the second it clicked, he peeled recklessly out of the lot and tore down the street.

"Will…" I said quietly, my heart still beating madly from adrenaline and fear.

No answer.

"Will how did you know those men?"

"I told you Cali," he said quietly, his jaw set as he pushed the car even further past the speed limit. "You don't know me as well as you think you do."


	25. Chapter 25

Wpov

At ninety miles and hour the ride home was short, but it was entirely silent. I didn't know what Cali was thinking and she didn't say a word. I parked the car outside our building but neither of us moved after the engine cut out.

I was so angry I couldn't even look at her.

"What the hell were you thinking Cali?"

She didn't respond.

"Do you realize how STUPID it was for you to go there tonight?" I said forcing myself to face her and she flinched.

Immediately, my anger died.

I'd seen Cali battle monsters, take down men twice her size, and take on powerful magic I couldn't even hope to attempt without a trace of fear. But I could see it now. She was scared. I'd never imagined she'd be afraid of anything, least of all me.

I didn't know how to handle it.

I rested my elbows on the steering wheel, put my head in my hands, and let out a deep breath.

I was exhausted. Was it really just a few hours ago that I was at Sadie's homecoming? It didn't seem real. As if those memories belonged to someone else.

But this, being stuck with Cali, was reality. I tried to ignore it tonight but no matter how many dances I went to, or distractions I tried to hide behind, nothing was going to change it. This was my life I couldn't run from it, and though she couldn't know it, it was completely controlled by Cali.

Finally, the moment I'd been dreading had come. She spoke.

"What are you going to do about the car?" she asked evenly and I was so shocked, I forgot my exhaustion. I looked up and stared at her. She and Tyler had just been ambushed, and she'd just spent the last twenty minutes speeding in a stolen car with a neighbor she just realized she'd been completely wrong about for all years she'd known him. How could she be so calm? Was she in shock?

"What?"

"You stole a car." She said gesturing towards the charger around us. "What are you going to do with it? We can't keep it here."

I stared at her.

"Are you insane?"

"What?" she asked defensively.

"THAT'S what your worried about? After everything that's happened tonight, that's what you ask?"

"I don't want to ask about anything else." She said with a strange expression.

Another moment of silence passed.

"Don't worry about the car." I said eventually. "I'll take care of it."

"Is this a regular thing for you?"

"No." I said. At least not anymore…

"Because you seem rather adept at it." She pressed.

"Let's just not talk about this ok?" I asked knowing what would happen if my mother found out about this. "Pretend it never happened."

Cali's expression was unreadable. Her face told me one thing, but her eyes quite another. I couldn't tell if she was grateful for what I'd done or furious.

"Ok." She said eventually and I breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"So now what?" she asked looking around.

"I'm going to deal with this." I said gesturing around at the car. "You should go to bed."

"I don't want to sleep."

"You will when your adrenaline goes down." I assured her.

"But-"

"Just go home." I said trying to stay patient. "Please."

"Fine." She said flatly. "But on one condition."

"What?"

"You have to tell me what's going on." She said and I felt a shock of fear go through me. "How do you always manage to find me? Who were those guys with the guns? Why did they and that other guy at the party know who I was? And why were they afraid of you?"

All I could do was look at her. I'd been lying and bending the truth to Cali for years, but not even I could come up with an excuse that came even close to covering up what had happened to night.

"You're not going to tell me, are you?" she asked.

"I don't think you really want to know." I said looking out the windshield.

"Is it that bad?"

"Yeah."

"Fair enough." She said and I heard the car door open.

"What are you doing?" I asked looking over as she stepped out.

"I'm going home." She said leaning back down to look at me. "That's what you wanted, isn't it?"

"Yes." I said feeling a flood of relief go through me. For once she was deciding not to be difficult.

"I'm guessing I shouldn't mention this to your parents."

"My Mom would literally kill me."

She managed a grin.

"Alright." She said quietly then hesitated. "Will?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you." She said looking at her feet. "For everything."

She chanced a glance at me with an uncertain expression, and as her eyes met mine, I felt every single bitter and resentful feeling I'd had for her, no matter how strong, fade away and was replaced with something else. I didn't know what it was, but suddenly I felt that if I'd gone back to when Aphrodite had first approached me, and she'd shown me everything I would have gone through just to get to this point, knowing everything I did now, I'd choose to do it over again in an instant.

I had no idea what to say, luckily, she didn't seem to require an answer.

"I'll see you around." She said straightening up. "Be safe on the road. There's a maniac out there speeding like he stole a car."

"Thanks for the warning." I said dry laugh and watched as she walked into the apartment building.

I didn't know why I sat there for a while, I needed to return the car, but it wasn't until I saw Cali's room light turn on that I realized I'd been waiting for it.

I restarted the car wondering why I was so calm. Tonight had been a disaster, my worst nightmare, but we'd made it out ok. I was sure that the consequences for this were going to be astronomical but I didn't have to think about that now. She was safe. That was all that mattered.

…..

When I finally made it home, I had a weird dream. I was thirteen again, it was my first night of camp, and I was sitting at the bonfire with my brothers in sisters having just been claimed earlier that day.

 _I looked around uncertainly at the people laughing with their friends and roasting marshmallows with their cabin members._

 _Already today I'd been attacked by freakish bird creatures, then my mom had just dumped me here after telling me the craziest stories about my dad, who she'd refused to speak about until now._

 _She'd said they would explain everything, but what they were saying made no sense._

 _Was I seriously supposed to believe these people were the children of Gods? Not just any gods, the Greek ones, from the Ancient civilization that had fallen hundreds of years ago. They looked like normal teenagers. And suddenly, I had tons of brothers and sisters I'd never known about, so many that I couldn't even remember all their names. They were all supposedly related to me from the same asshole that abandoned my mother and me?_

 _I still wasn't entirely convinced this wasn't just some crazy dream._

 _"You're the new kid Will right?"_

 _I looked up to see one of the kids in my cabin sit on the log next to me._

 _"Yeah."_

 _"My name is Theodore, Theodore Main," he said kindly. "But everyone calls me Ted."_

 _"Hi." I said flatly hoping to convey I wasn't really in the mood to talk. He was about my height with dark hair, and the exact same eye color. I put him at about the same age as me, maybe a year or two older._

 _"The first day's always rough." He said with a sympathetic smile. "It's a lot to take in, but you'll get used to it." He assured me._

 _"I seriously doubt that."_

 _"Yeah that's what everyone thinks, but you'll find that a lot of things that you happened to you in the mortal world you couldn't explain, make a lot more sense here. In a way, even for the people who don't live here year round, it's kind of like our home."_

 _I was about to tell him that this crazy place could never feel like home, when I heard a laugh and felt my attention drawn to the opposite side of the fire, where a group of unnaturally attractive teenagers were all sitting jabbering excitedly in a language I didn't understand._

 _"Is that French?" I asked and Ted scowled._

 _"Yeah, those are the kids from Aphrodite's Cabin. That's why they all look like models." He said almost as if he knew exactly what was on my mind. "They've got an annoying habit of speaking it when they're excited or don't want the other campers to know what they're talking about."_

 _I looked at the girl who had laughed._

 _She looked to be about a year younger than me, but already she was insanely beautiful. She had long light brown hair was set in perfect waves, and a smile that would have put a supermodel to shame. But what caught my attention were her eyes. I'd never seen anything like it before. They were like tropical waters varying between stunning shades of blue and green._

 _"Who's that in the center?" I asked._

 _"The young one?" he asked and I nodded not taking my eyes off her._

 _"That is camp's little darling Callista Parker, princess of the Aphrodite cabin." He said. "But don't let her looks fool you. She's hardly the damsel in distress type."_

 _"What do you mean?" I asked._

 _"She might be a daughter of Aphrodite, but she's the best fighter in her age group, and at the rate she's going, she might end up one of the best in camp. That, and one blast of her charmspeak and she could have you running through the forest naked trying to fight the monsters without weapons or armor."_

 _I had no idea what charmspeak was, but it sounded dangerous._

 _"Has she actually done that?" I asked wondering how someone who looked like her could do something like that._

 _"Only once. Luckily the guy survived, but I wouldn't put it passed her to do it again if she was really annoyed. The worst part is there's nothing you can do to stop it. She hardly even has to try."_

 _"That's terrifying."_

 _"Yeah for such a pretty face she's got a dark streak." He said and I could tell he was frowning. "But for the most part she's a sweet kid. She's responsible for half of the long-term relationships around this place. Even mine. But she's powerful." He warned. "Even though she's young most of her siblings want her to be cabin counselor when the next chance comes up. You don't want to get on her bad side."_

 _She'd stopped laughing now, and seemed to have sensed me staring because she looked away from her siblings and her eyes met mine over the fire._

 _I felt a strange shock go through me. She looked surprised for a second, but then she smiled._

 _The world seemed to slow down as suddenly, all the sounds of the fire and camp simply faded away as well as the rest of my surroundings leaving only the girl._

 _"Will!"_

 _"What?" I asked confused and I looked over only to realize that it was Ted who'd shouted. He'd been shaking me._

 _"Did you seriously not hear me? I've been trying to get your attention for the past minute."_

 _"N-no." I said my brain feeling foggy._

 _He looked at me in concern then over to the Aphrodite group, who'd all fallen silent. One of the girls leaned over to Callista and asked something, still in French, but she shook her head looking a little confused._

 _"What just happened?" Ted asked confused. "This isn't like them, usually they never shut up."_

 _The girl was still looking at me, but I forced myself to look away. As Ted had already stated, she was beautiful, and popular, and everyone in camp loved her. What would she want with a nobody like me?_

"Will?"

I was brought back to consciousness by the sound of my mother knocking on my bedroom door.

Sunlight was streaming into my room and I glanced at my phone to check the time. It was one in the afternoon and I had several missed calls and texts from Sadie.

"Will, are you still not up yet?" my mother asked opening the door and looking at me in surprise. I knew why she was confused. Usually I was an early riser but I hadn't gotten home until five this morning. Not that she knew that. I'd run into her after we got back to the apartment building and I'd changed before going back down to Sadie's, she probably assumed that we finished the movie and I came up after that.

"I'm awake." I muttered sitting up and rubbing my eyes.

"Someone's here to see you."

"What?" I asked still not fully awake, my brain seemed to be running at half speed.

"You have a visitor." She said impatiently. "Put on a shirt, she's waiting in the hall."

"Ok." I mumbled stifling a yawn and walking over to my dresser. In the time it took me to change, I'd remembered the missed calls and texts on my phone.

I grimaced. I thought I knew who my visitor might be.

Dreading what was waiting for me on the other side, I walked to my front door, bracing for crying, yelling, or whatever emotional backlash I'd earned from ditching Sadie last night. I was totally thrown however, when I opened it and saw Cali with a book in her arms, waiting in the hall.

"Am I still asleep?" I asked suspiciously. I looked over my shoulder, making there wasn't anything wrong with my surroundings that might indicate I was still in a dream.

"Very funny." She said sounding irritated.

"What are you doing here?" I asked confused. I'd assumed that after last night, she'd be even angrier with me than usual.

She glanced up at me and hesitated before looking at her feet.

"Can we talk?"

"Talk?" I asked blankly.

She nodded, still not looking at me.

This was very odd. Usually when she was around me, Cali's disposition was pretty hostile, even aggressive. She never wanted to just talk, and if I was able to get her to say anything of importance it was after a great deal of prying.

"What about?" I asked uncertain what I should feel. It had just occurred to me that she might have more questions about last night and I definitely didn't feel like answering them.

"Isn't obvious?" she asked annoyed while glaring up at me.

There was the Cali I knew, but I frowned when I noticed she was blushing.

"No." I said crossing my arms over my chest and looking at her.

"I wanted to," she hesitated, obviously not prepared to say what she really wanted to tell me. "Look I just…"

She looked down again but this time seemed more frustrated rather than angry. As if she really wanted to say something, but couldn't bring herself to do it.

"I have a math project due this week." She said eventually showing me the book she was holding and I saw it was her algebra textbook.

"What?" I asked completely confused.

"Would you help me?" she asked glancing up at me looking hesitant.

There was a full minute of silence while I just looked at her.

"I shouldn't have asked." She said quietly. She turned.

"Are you joking?" I asked her incredulously.

"Look I get it. If you don't want to it's fine I just-"

"Cali, are you being serious?" I asked.

She paused and looked up at me, then nodded.

"Come on." I said turning back and walking into the apartment, gesturing for her to follow me.

She hesitated, but then too walked into the apartment.

"Cali," my mother said brightly as we walked into the kitchen. "It's nice to see you again sweetie."

Cali nodded awkwardly, I had a feeling she too was remembering the last time she was here when she stormed out and her embarrassment had increased.

"I'm going to help Cali with one of her assignments. We'll be in my room."

"Will I'm not so sure Dave wants her in your-" she started but I cut her off.

"I don't think Dave would really understand some of the topics that might come up. You know, about our parents."

"Alright." She said frowning obviously picking up on my drift. "But don't take too long."

"Got it."

We crossed the living room and walked into to my room neither of us speaking until Cali closed the door

"Ok, so what kind of assignment do you-"

"I didn't know Tyler would do something like that." She said quietly, hugging herself and looking anywhere but me.

I was shocked into silence. I thought this was one of those things that we weren't going to talk about. Just pretended like it didn't happen and move on with our lives, but once she had started to speak, the words just kept tumbling out. It was like she'd been waiting to say this for a long time.

"I knew he was getting into trouble, but nothing like that."

"Cali, what did you think was going to happen?" I asked her.

She shrugged.

"I guess I didn't," she muttered.

"Yeah, well," I said trying to keep my tone as neutral as possible. "Now you see where not thinking gets you."

"I never thought he would put me in that situation."

"Why not?" I asked this time my tone a little bitter and she glanced at me, worried. "He put you in all other sorts of stupid scenarios. Really how was this that much different?"

"None of that other stuff was dangerous though."

"Debatable." I muttered.

"Well we always got out of it didn't we?" she shot back defensively.

"No, you got him out of it." I said anger getting the better of me, but it wasn't directed at her. "All he ever did was use you Cali, how could you think he wasn't going to try and use you to save his skin this time?"

"I thought we were friends." She said quietly her eyes were a pale gray blue, a color I wasn't used to seeing. I had no idea what it meant.

"That's not what friends do." I said coldly and again she looked at me.

"What do they do?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"What do friends do?" she asked, this time looking directly at me. She seemed adamant I give an answer.

"I dunno." I said. It was a weird question. "Just normal stuff. Hang out. Talk. Help each other with problems. Support each other when things get rough. Get pizza."

"Are we friends?" she asked quietly.

I looked at her. Again, this was a weird question. I couldn't read her expression but for once she didn't look angry or resentful towards me. It was something else, not exactly good, but cautious maybe? As if she was worried about my answer, but at the same time, had a little bit of hope.

"Cali, you know I'm always going to be there to help you when you need it." I said frowning and she looked away from me as if she already knew what I was going to say. "But you can't honestly expect me to believe that you consider me a friend."

"So I was right then." She said quietly nodding to herself. "I really have no friends."

"That's not what I meant." I started quickly spurred by a sudden onset of guilt. "It's just that-"

"You know what sucks?" she asked suddenly her voice tight and she looked up at the ceiling. I was startled to see her eyes were watering. "I came over here to say I was sorry. For everything. For all the times I'd lied to you, all the things I'd said, and everything I'd ever put you through. And even then I was being selfish," she hesitated. "I was just saying it because I wanted your help I wanted to turn things around." She looked at me now, she'd gained control of her voice, and while her eyes were still wet there were no tears. "But then, as I started saying it, and realizing all of the horrible things I've done, and the kind of person I am. I realized, I really mean it." She paused. "I'm sorry Will. I really am. About everything. Everything I've done, everything I've done to you, to Max. I'm sorry for all of it. But the worst part is. No matter how sorry I am. How bad I feel. Even you, who was there for me when no one was, don't want me."

She shook her head.

"I shouldn't have come here."

"Cali, wait." I started.

"No. It was a mistake." She started walking towards the door. "I'll just leave you alone now. I told you from the beginning I wasn't the kind of person you wanted to get to know and now you know."

She reached to the door but before I knew what I was doing I grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

"Will you don't have to do this." She said quietly. "You can let go."

I didn't.

"Seriously Will," she said trying to push me off but I didn't let her move. "You don't have to feel sorry for me. Let go."

"Friends don't tell each other what to do." I said and she froze, then after another few seconds wrapped her arms around me and I pulled her closer.

"Well I guess I have one friend." She muttered quietly her voice muffled by my shirt.


	26. Chapter 26

Cpov

Returning to school was not fun. Everyone had heard about the fight between Max and Tyler and about my suspension, though strangely no one really seemed to know what I'd been suspended for.

The rumors weren't anything I hadn't heard before. If half the things I'd heard people whispering in the halls were true, I'd been caught with weapons in my book bag and drugs in my locker as well as been caught vandalizing the teacher's lounge with Tyler.

Usually this wouldn't have bothered me. I would have ignored the gossip, or left if I got tired of hearing myself being talked about, but since I'd decided to finally turn things around, it was getting to me. Now that I was actually going to class and paying attention, I was starting to realize just how bad my reputation was and how poorly the teachers and the students saw me.

But it wasn't just what they said that made it real to me, though that was a big help, it was how they treated me as well. I hadn't noticed before because I'd never really cared about school, but now that I was actually trying, I could see just how hard it was going to be to convince anyone that I really did care.

It wasn't until I got to Algebra 2 on Monday however, that I realized just how hard it was going to be.

The entire lecture I tried so hard to pay attention to what my teacher was saying, but got completely lost and it didn't help when my ADHD started acting up. I even tried to force myself to focus by taking notes, but my Dyslexia made that nearly impossible. He was going too quickly through his lesson and I couldn't keep up. Finally, when the nightmare of a class ended and I tried to turn my project in, came the final blow that made my situation real to me like nothing else had.

"What do you want Cali?" My math teacher Mr. Davis said stiffly. He was a short man with a pot belly, dark bushy eyebrows, and a mustache to match. He didn't even bother to look up from the stack of project papers he was going through as he addressed me, rather simply continued to check that everyone in the class had turned theirs in.

"I was just going to turn my project in."

"Yeah," he said letting out a humorless laugh. "Right."

"I'm serious. I have it right here." I said pulling the packet out of my book bag but when I held it out to him, he didn't take it.

He glanced up at me, an eyebrow raised.

"Cali, I don't have time for this."

"But-" I started, but he cut me off.

"As you can see I've got a lot of papers to grade and my next lesson to prepare. And the last thing I need is to rifle through six pages of you answering every problem with 'This is pointless' mixed with swear words written in Greek and French. Yes, I had them translated." He said coldly when he caught my expression. I had forgotten about that…

"But that wasn't, I really did-" I started trying to explain both the fact that my project really was finished, and the curse words hadn't been directed at him but rather at my own frustration from last time I'd tried to finish one of his packets.

"No Cali, I'm done." He said shaking his head and standing up. "I've already wasted too much time on you as it is. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go replace the dry erase marker that ran out during the lesson."

He walked towards the classroom door leaving me alone in the class room with my project still in my hand.

"Wait." I said incredulously and running after him. The one time I actually tried in this class and he walks away…

"No, enough." He said. "And if you don't stop pestering me I'll give you deten- William? What are you doing here?"

I looked passed Mr. Davis and into the hall to see Will standing outside the door looking quite at his ease.

"I came to remind Cali to turn in her project." He said shrugging, but part of me wondered if he knew how Mr. Davis would react when I tried to turn it in.

"You knew she had a project due?"

"Well yeah, I spent most of this weekend helping her with it. It would be a shame to think our time was wasted if she wasn't able to turn it in." He said taking the papers from me and holding it out to him, in what was almost a defiant gesture.

"That project contains a quarter's worth of material." He said stubbornly. "A quarter in which she's failed every quiz and test she's bothered to show up for. There's no way she could have learned it all in two days."

"I don't think you're giving her enough credit." Will said. "She's a smart girl. She picks things up pretty quickly."

I felt myself blush.

"You'd see it too if you just gave her a chance." He said holding up my project again, encouraging Mr. Davis to take it.

They looked at each other for a full thirty seconds.

"Cali." Davis said eventually. "What's the difference between the domain and the range."

"Isn't the domain the X coordinates or an ordered pair and the range is the set of Y coordinates?" I asked.

He took the papers.

"Excellent." Will said pleasantly. "Let's go Cali. You'll be late for History."

"How do you know my schedule?" I asked him. I wasn't even sure I completely knew it after all the school I'd skipped.

"I expect this to be good," Davis called after us after we'd begun to walk away and he was being swallowed by the mass of students that were making their way to class. "If you've had Will's help. He was my best student last year."

"Yeah I bet he was." I muttered frowning but then looked at Will. "How did you know?"

"Know what?" Will asked.

"Know he wasn't going to accept my project." I said.

"I didn't." he said. "But I figured you've had to piss a lot of teachers off this year so I'd better come make sure nothing went wrong."

I felt anger spike through me, but shut it down. I knew he was only trying to help, and if I was honest, I needed it. If he hadn't convinced Davis to take the project I would have failed this quarter for sure. So, instead of lashing out this time, I swallowed my pride and said.

"Thanks."

After school, I waited until Will was done with practice before I went home. Max didn't talk to me, not that I was expecting him to, but I didn't try to force him. As much as I wanted to talk to him Will had made a good point, trying to force him to listen to me was only going to make him even angrier. If I wanted him to see I'd changed, the best way was to prove it.

"You know they're talking about us right?" I asked pulling my hood farther over my head as we passed a few girls on his track team on our way home. They were all looking our way and whispering to each other.

"Yeah." He said calmly. "So what?"

"So don't you care?" I asked shoving my hands in my pockets. They were his team mates after all.

"Not really. And you shouldn't either." He said shrugging. "And you shouldn't hide your face like that. When you do you're only giving them what they want."

"What's that?"

"A reaction." He said. "They keep looking at you to try and see how you're going to behave about what they're saying. How you act is how they determine if it's true or not, and hiding from everyone when you know what they're saying only proves to them they're right. Best just to stay in the open and show them they're wrong."

"Easy for you to say." I said quietly. "You've never had to live something like this down."

"You'd be surprised what I've had to live down Cali." He said quietly and I felt him pull off my hood.

On the walk back to our apartment building Will and I spoke about camp. He'd been trying to get me to go back for years now, but this was the first time I was considering it. Usually over break I would try to find ways to sneak out and hang out with Max, but at the moment it didn't seem like he was ever going to talk to me again, and according to Will, he and his mother were visiting family in Florida. So, even if we were talking, it wasn't as if I was going to see him.

"I'm just not sure I'd be welcomed back, you know?" I said as we crossed the street.

"No. I don't." he said frowning.

"Look at me!" I said in exasperation. "They'd take one look at this," I gestured to my clothes. "And would probably kick me out of the cabin. I'm not the picture perfect Barbie they're all going to expect to see if I went back." I looked at my feet. "I'm just a screw up."

"Ok first things first Cal," he said and I realized that the only other person to use that nickname was Max. "You're not a screw up."

I raised an eyebrow at him.

"You went through a rough patch that's all, but you're fixing it, and second, they're your family. And family accepts you no matter your mistakes."

"Max is my family." I pointed out. "He hasn't been so forgiving."

"Well you've put him through a lot." Will said frowning. "But he'll get over it. He always does."

"Yeah I guess." I said uncertainly as we entered the lobby.

"Hey Cali."

Both Will and I froze.

We turned to see Sadie stepping out of the elevator giving me a friendly smile, she spotted Will and it faltered for a moment, but then she looked back at me.

"Thanks again for doing my hair and make up the other day."

"No problem." I said feeling confused and a bit anxious. Why was she being so nice to me?

"Let me know if there's anything I can do to return the favor." She said brightly.

"Uh, ok." I said still confused and with one last smile to me, and an awkward nod to Will, she walked out the front door tapping away at her phone no doubt texting one of her many girlfriends.

"What was that about?" I asked looking at Will. He didn't seemed the slightest worried about her coolness towards him, but then again, Will had never really put much thought into Sadie's reactions about him. Or most people for that matter. Half the time he seemed off in his own little world until someone brought him back.

"I guess when you helped her she got to know the real you."

"The real me?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, the person you've been so determined to hide all these years. The one Max and I see. I guess she wanted to be friends with her."

"You think Sadie wants to be my friend?" I asked in utter disbelief as we walked into the elevator and he pressed the number five button.

"I think after you decided to help her, she already is."

Wpov

According to Cali, things between her and her father were tense over the next couple of days but nothing escalated to a point where I would be concerned. They'd gotten into an argument over what she stated was 'the dumbest thing he could pick a fight over but he's an asshole and I don't care anyways shut up Will.'

Despite what happened with her father, and the fact that Max still wasn't talking to her, Cali seemed to be a little happier.

Things were going better for her at school. Some of the tips that Dave had taught me were working for her and she was finding it easier to pay attention and keep up in class.

She'd even been invited to go to the mall with Sadie a few of her friends on Saturday and while she really didn't like to shop, I encouraged her to go. I thought it was good for her to spend time with other girls her age. We didn't talk about it much, but it was kind of obvious that I was her only real friend and since I had plans with Chris and a couple of teammates next weekend, she would have been by herself all day.

With Tyler gone, and her Dad leaving her alone, all she had to focus on was school, and she was starting to see that now things were stable on the outside, it was much easier for her to do well.

She'd gotten an A on her project and some of her teachers were starting to notice her improvement.

"I did really well on the pop quiz Cadwell gave us." She said happily as we stepped into my apartment. "And when Mr. Davis asked me a question during class I got it right."

"That's great." I said grinning. She sounded like a kindergartener on her first day of class.

"No it's lame." She said shaking her head. "God I feel like such a dork for being excited about this."

"It's not lame." I said automatically.

She raised an eyebrow.

"Ok, it's a little lame." I amended.

I felt something smack the back of my head and saw my mother had just stepped out of the kitchen. She gave me a disapproving look but then smiled at Cali.

"Don't listen to him Cali. It's ok to be proud about it. What you're doing isn't easy, and you're doing really well."

My mom had always liked Cali because she was the only other demigod near by, but over the past couple months, when Cali and I had been spending more and more time with each other, she'd developed even more of a soft spot for her.

She and Dave both knew that Cali had had some issues, but she knew what it was like to grow up with an alcoholic for a father and an absent mother, so she felt sympathy rather than suspicion like Dave. Though, as he saw how hard she was trying to catch up, Dave was starting to warm up to her as well.

"Are you guys hungry?"

"Yeah." I said.

"I'll go make some bagel bites." She said brightly while Cali and I set up at the table.

"Oh Will!" my mother called from the kitchen.

"Yeah?" I asked while Cali disappeared behind the Great Gatsby, which her English class was currently reading.

"I left a new shirt for you to try on, on your bed." She said. "I want you to make sure if it fits before you meet the coach on Sunday."

"What coach?" Cali asked peeking over the book cover.

"My Mom's old track coach." I said for some reason feeling a little awkward. "He wants to meet me, you know, show me around the school, tell me about the team."

"Oh." She said her expression unreadable but her tone a little disappointed. "Right. You think you're gonna go?"

It was kind of an unspoken agreement between Cali and I that we didn't talk about anything passed the end of the school year. We were usually so focused on getting her caught up that we really didn't have time to think about the future, but whenever it was brought up things felt distinctly out of place. I knew she'd rather die than admit it but I knew she was worried about what was going to happen when I wasn't around next year to help her out, and I still couldn't think of a plausible excuse not to go when I had a full scholarship to a great school, so I couldn't tell her not to worry about it.

Whenever this came up I found that I was at war with myself. Part of me, a very strong part of me, really, really wanted to go. But the other part, which was also very strong, didn't want to leave her behind, and was scared of what her mother would do if I tried.

"I'm still deciding." I said.

"What's there to decide?" she asked incredulously. "It's an awesome school, and you have a full ride."

"There's just a couple of things I need to sort out." I said shrugging.

"Oh. Do other school's want you too?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Well that's not the worst problem to have." She said with a grin but it didn't reach her eyes.

"I'm gonna go try on the shirt." I said suddenly not wanting to be in the room. "You're good?" I asked her and she gave me the thumbs up while returning to her book.

I walked to my room unconsciously playing with the ring on my left ring finger. It felt tighter than usual.

I closed my door and twisted the ring until it transformed and the long bronze sword appeared in my hand.

I tossed it onto my bed along side the new dress shirt which was resting next to my track bag. I found myself looking back and forth between sword and my mortal possessions.

What the hell was I supposed to do?


	27. Chapter 27

Cpov

When the weekend rolled around, I had to admit I was kind of glad I had an excuse to get out of the house. My dad was working, and with Will gone I didn't really have anywhere else to be. I had to endure an entire morning of snobby rich girls make snide comments about my fashion sense, so when it came time to hang out with Sadie, I was grateful just to have an escape.

"Will you put your phone away?" Sadie asked me annoyed. We were sitting across from each other at a table in the food court of the mall after her friends had left, but neither of us felt like going back home yet. "God that's like the 7th time you've checked it in the past ten minutes. Who are you talking to anyways? Actually don't answer that." She said immediately giving me a shrewd look. "I know who."

I put my phone back in my pocket and looked at her. It was a lot easier to get away with texting Will when she'd been laughing and talking with her school friends, but now that we were alone, we were quickly realizing that we didn't have a lot to talk about.

"What's going on between you two anyways?" she asked taking a sip from her smoothie and raising an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"What do you mean what do I mean?" she asked me incredulously. "With the exception of today you two have pretty much been attached at the hip. One day you hate him, he goes running off to find you that night, and now you two are inseparable."

"It's kind of a long story." I said not wanting to go into the details of what happened after the party.

"I've got time." She said looking at me expectantly. "Spill."

"Look it's not what you think." I said knowing she thought the same thing as everyone else. "We're not dating."

"Then what are you?" she asked.

"Why do you care?" I asked frowning.

"This has nothing to do with Will." She said accurately assessing my trepidation. "I've been over him for a while now. I'm just nosey and besides." She smiled. "This is what girl friends talk about."

"I've never really been good at the whole 'girl friends' thing." I said darkly.

"Yeah I've noticed." She said rolling her eyes. "But that's why you have me. So." She gave me a significant look. "What's up?"

"He's just helping me get caught up in school."

"It has nothing to do with that party?"

That caught my attention.

"How did you-"

"One of my friends lives in that neighborhood." She explained. "He met Will at homecoming and told me he saw him there. It's not really like him to go to that sort of thing and the only reason Will ever drops everything is if he's running after you so…" she finished with an expectant look.

"Yeah." I said looking at the table between us and ripping up her straw rapper. "I was there."

"What happened?"

"I don't really want to talk about it."

"That's fine." She said shrugging. "But I'm not going to leave you alone."

"I guess the best way to explain it was things got out of hand, my friend tried to use me to get it under control, but it put me in danger."

"And Will found out about it." She finished for me. "Which is why he ran off."

"Yeah."

"Well that makes sense I guess." She said shrugging. I tried to read her expression to see if she was angry about it or not but before I could get an accurate impression she asked another question. "So is that why you're spending so much time with him now? Cuz he helped you?"

"No." I said. "I just realized that after what my friend did I needed to make a change, start fixing all the mistakes I've made. And he's helping me get caught up in school."

"Yeah. I'm sure that's all he's doing." She said grinning.

"It is all he's doing." I said frowning.

"Ok Cali." She said sarcastically and standing up. "Let's go."

"Where?" I asked suspiciously.

"Shopping." She said gesturing around at the mall. "If he's going to be asking you out soon you'll need at least ONE cute outfit to wear on a date."

"He's not going to be asking me out." I said indignantly.

"Yeah ok." She said rolling her eyes. "Just come with me."

She finished her smoothie, tossed it into the nearest trashcan, then turned and looked at me expectantly.

"Get a move on Cali." She said. "We've got a lot of stores to visit."

I sighed but stood up and walked after her.

"Oh don't look so grumpy." She said brightly while linking her arm with mine. "This is good for you. It's ok to look like a girl every once and a while you know."

"Yeah sure." I said reaching for my phone.

"Nope!" she said taking my phone out of my hand before I could check it. "This is girl time and you are way overdue. No boys."

"But-" I started but she kept my phone out of reach.

"No!" she said stubbornly.

"Fine."

"Let's go." She said with a grin. "You're going so look so cute!"

An hour later and three stores in, I was starting to think this whole shopping trip was some sort of horrible plan Sadie had concocted to get back at me for taking Will away from her the night of her dance. Seriously, it was torture.

Every store we went to, she dragged me to the girliest colors in the most flamboyant styles she could find.

"It's not that bad." She said fairly holding out a dress that was more lace and frills I'd seen in my entire life.

"It's pink." I muttered darkly.

"But it's super cute." She said pouting.

"I'm not wearing pink." I countered stubbornly.

"Fine." She muttered irritably. "But you know, you could help. I'm shooting in the dark here. Besides baggy jackets and ripped jeans I don't know what you like."

"This is what I like." I said pulling up my hood when I noticed a few of Will's teammates outside looking in at me curiously.

"It's what you like, or it's what you're used to?" she asked suspiciously noticing the people staring from the outside.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's not a crime to branch out Cali. Who cares what people think?"

"Everyone cares."

"Well you shouldn't." she said shrugging. "You're the prettiest girl I've ever met, hell, you're probably the prettiest girl on the planet. If anyone can rock a bold outfit it's you."

"You're not helping." I mumbled feeling my stomach clench.

"Jeez," she said looking at me with what looked like wonder. "I never thought you of all people would be so insecure."

"I'm not insecure." I said incredulously.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked in disbelief. "You're the most insecure person I've ever met. You can't even have people looking at you."

"How would you feel if you had people gawking at you all the time?" I asked her angrily.

"Cali, do you know how many girls would kill to look like you?" she asked and suddenly she looked irritated. "You have so much potential and you're just wasting it."

"What potential?" I spat indignantly. "What exactly do you think I have going for me?"

"I," she started then blushed. "I just meant-"

"You meant my looks." I said bitterly. "That's all anyone ever sees in me. My appearance. There's a reason why I wear the things that I wear Sadie. But it still doesn't work does it? Because how I look, that's all you really care about."

"That's not true." She said quietly.

"Then why are we here?" I asked turning back to her. "Why are we shopping for some stupid outfit I'm never going to wear? That I don't even want?"

"I just thought you'd want to look nice sometime." She said quietly.

"If I wanted to don't you think I would have done it?" I asked her.

Again she didn't answer.

"The truth is, we're here for you. This is what you wanted to do. Dress me up like some sort of Barbie right?"

There was a moment of tense silence between us where she looked like she wanted to say something, but decided against it.

"Fine." She said. "I'll stop trying to pick stuff out for you."

"Thank you." I said stiffly.

"But I still think you should get at least one nice thing." She said stubbornly. "What if one day you do want to look nice? For whatever reason."

By that I knew she meant Will.

I crossed my arms over my chest.

"It's not going to happen."

"Humor me." She said doing the same.

"Fine." I said darkly. "But I get to pick it out."

"Sure. And I'll keep my mouth shut." She said, then added. "As long as it's not too hideous."

"Well that's sweet of you." I muttered sarcastically.

"Just here to help." She said with a grin. "Now. Go pick something pretty."

Wpov

"Would you stop checking your phone Will?" my mother chided as we toured the Prestion campus with our student guide. I could tell she was excited to be back at her school. She hadn't stopped smiling for more than five seconds since we arrived and she was acting more motherly than ever.

"Oh don't bother him Mrs. C." Chris snickered. He was touring the campus with us as well, seeing as the school had sent us both letters of interest in us joining their athletic program, we'd decided to check out the school together. So far we'd already seen some of the dorms, the library and other common areas. We were on our way to the gym now to meet Coach Thompson who would talk to us as we took a look at the track. "He's checking up on his girlfriend."

"Shut up Chris." I said annoyed.

He was right in a way. I was texting Cali. She'd disappeared on me after saying something about Sadie forcing her to actually go shopping, which I could only imagine must take up her entire attention knowing Sadie, but still, I'd been in such constant contact with Cali lately, it felt weird not talking to her.

"And here you can see the school lawn where students like to study or play pick up games." Our tour guide continued, pointing towards a large grassy field where a few students were tossing a Frisbee despite the chilly weather. She seemed to be completely unaware of the whispered conversation going behind her.

"Look, I'm all for texting in class and during boring presentations and all, but you're Mom's right." Chris continued undercover of the guide's boring anecdote about the history of the lawn. "You should be paying attention. This place is actually pretty cool. You might seriously think about going here. I know I am."

My mother laughed politely at a bad pun the guide made and I whispered.

"I'm just making sure she's alright."

"She's shopping." He said giving me an incredulous look. "What's could happen? You think she's going to be strangled by a pair of jeans or something?"

A number of things ran through my mind, many of which had six-inch claws and breathed fire, but he gave me a shrewd look.

"This is about Tyler, isn't it?"

"Yeah." I lied just to change the subject. "It is."

"Dude he's not going to try anything." He said waving his hand dismissing the notion. "Not after you kicked his ass. And besides. Even if he did, it sounds like your girl's finally got her head on straight. So don't worry about it."

"Yeah well," I said shortly. "Easier said than done."

"Do my eyes deceive me?" a loud voice said and all of us, including the tour guide, jumped. We turned to see a tall thin man with dark brown, slightly graying hair and kind brown eyes walking towards us with his arms open wide. "Or is that the one and only Karen Silverman?"

"Coach Thompson!" My mother said happily and tackled the man into a hug. "It's so good to see you again." She stammered.

"It's good to see you too." He said with a grin as she let him go and he looked at our guide. "Thank you Leah, I can take it from here."

She nodded and started walking back towards the direction of the library.

"You don't look a day older than when you left." He said grinning at my mother. "This must be your son Will." He said glancing at me. "Yes I can see the resemblance." He said with a grin then looked at Chris. "And you must be Christopher."

We nodded and shook his hand.

"Well we're very excited you boys have decided to come check us out." He said crossing his arms over his chest and looking at us with what looked like approval. "I'm not going to beat around the bush, we want you both on our team and if I can manage it, you two could be looking at full scholarships to the school. Assuming your grades are up to our standards." I felt my chest constrict slightly for a moment but the pressure eased when he said. "But I've had a look at your records and I don't think that should be an issue."

I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding.

"Shall we head down to the track?" he asked.

"That's what we came for." My mother said excitedly.

"You know she probably doesn't talk about it too much." Thompson said gesturing for us to continue down the sidewalk towards the gym. "But your mother was quite the superstar back in the day."

"Stop." My mother muttered going red in the face and sounding embarrassed.

"It's true." He said grinning. "She was always the most modest runner I'd ever trained, but also one of the most naturally gifted. Judging by your times in your last couple of meets, I can see that it runs in the family."

Still red as a cherry, my mother beamed at me.

"But don't think we haven't forgotten about you." The coach said to Chris as we entered building that looked newer the most of the ones we'd seen on campus. "We've been very impressed by your times as well Mr. Evans. And especially your academic achievements."

He grinned. You wouldn't know it because he never spoke about it, but Chris was practically a genius. He was in all of the Honors classes, AP courses, and part of the National Honors Society. He was even captain of the academic decathlon team at our school that went all the way to worlds.

"And of course being part of our athletic department, you'll have full access to all of our equipment, trainers, and any other resources you could possibly need."

"Whoa." Chris said his eyes going wide as we both stopped dead in our tracks.

He'd through a hall and lead us into a state of the art gym complete with a full sized indoor track, lane pool, hot tubs, and rock wall, a free climbing area, as well as a rock wall that allowed you to climb up to a water slide or jump back into the pool.

"This includes our newly renovated 24 hour gym." He said with a grin. "Like I said we are both very interested in both of you boys entering our program. I was hoping this might give you some incentive."

"Nice isn't it?" my mother said ecstatically from behind us.

I nodded.

"And that's just the gym." She said quietly putting a hand on my shoulder and positively glowing with pride. "Think about all the classes you'll be able to take. The friends you'll make, and team mates you'll have."

"Why don't we take a proper tour of the facilities, I can introduce you to the trainers and the assistant coach and then we can meet one on one and talk about what your school life would be like if you decided to attend."

He gestured us to follow him towards the treadmills but I hung back when I felt my phone vibrate.

I glanced to make sure neither Chris or my mother was looking before I saw I had a text from Cali

'Just got my phone back from Sadie. Does she really expect me to wear this?!'

I almost burst out laughing when she sent me a photo of a violently pink dress that had plenty of sparkles and feathers on one shoulder. Again checking quickly to make sure no one had noticed, I quickly typed.

'Looks alright to me. You should wear it on your next date with Ken at the dreamhouse.'

I sent the message and caught up with the others.

After about a half an hour, we finally reached Coach Thompson's office. He said he wanted to speak with Chris first so my mother and I waited on the chairs outside his office while she told me stories about her college days.

"You're going to have such a great time." She said with a sigh. "I remember this one year, during one of the football games with one of our biggest rivals, a whole bunch of the art students went streaking and pretended to pose a nude models in the middle of the field."

She laughed.

"And the track parties were so much fun. We had this tradition of making the Freshman play a round of beer pong, chug a beer, then make them do a hundred yard sprint against the upper classmen."

"Did you do that?" I asked her grinning in amazement.

"Of course not." She said with dignity then smiled a little guiltily. "I didn't do it. I won it."

I laughed.

"Really?"

"Yep." She said proudly.

"You beat the upperclassmen?"

"Yes I did. So you've got a big name to live up to." She said laughing.

"Apparently." I said and we lapsed into an amused silence in which I was forced to an examine a question I hadn't thought of for a very long time. "Hey Mom?"

"Yeah sweetie?" she asked curiously.

"You didn't meet Dad at one of those parties, did you?" I asked and her smile faded.

We never really seemed to talk about him much. Sure she spoke to him whenever he visited, but they never seemed anything more than old acquaintances. And now she was married to Dave, it was like the only thing that was a remained of their relationship was with me.

I knew in the past she didn't talk about him because it would put me in danger. Even know about the Greek world put a demigod at risk. But after, things just spiraled so out of control, it seemed like we barely started talking, well, really talking until she'd already moved on.

"Will I-" she started, but before she could say anything else, the door opened and Chris walked out. He gave me the thumbs up and I stood.

"You ready?" Coach Thompson asked and I nodded while Chris took the now empty seat next to my mother. "Follow me then."

I followed him into the office and took the seat opposite the desk from his own as he shut the door.

"Will." He said making his way to his seat and setting down. "I'm not going to lie to you." He looked at me, with a strong, critical expression. The look of a coach. "You are the top contender we want for our team. Now I know a lot of schools are going to be saying that to you in the next couple of weeks, but we're going to do everything we can to get you to say yes to us."

I nodded.

"That being said, I feel obligated to tell you that you just barely met our academic requirements."

The knot in my stomach that I had felt earlier now returned, but this time it was even tighter.

"We are a very prestigious school, and our student athletes are just that. Student," he stressed the word. "Athletes, we expect your grades to come first. And I'm not going to lie, your first year records from high school are not very good."

"I know." I muttered.

"It says here you transferred schools, and that's when your grades picked up. But your records from your previous school, well, detentions, suspensions, fights." He frowned. "Needless to say, they're a bit alarming and the demands on our athletes are very high. I can't offer you this scholarship in good faith if I think the stress from your sports career might bring about a relapse of this kind of behavior."

"I understand."

"So. Do you have anything you'd like to say in your defense?"

"I changed." I said with a shrug.

"What do you mean?"

"Before my Mom got remarried, like you said, things for me weren't very good." I paused collecting my thoughts. "But I got lucky. I was given a chance to start over, and I'm not looking back."

"You say all of this is behind you?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

I nodded.

Again he gave me that critical look that made me feel as if he were analyzing every part of me.

"You know, your mother was one of my favorite athletes." He said. "She was smart, driven, and energetic. I can see that in you. But people like that, they need to exercise a great deal of constraint otherwise their greatest qualities can lead them into trouble."

I thought of Cali.

Was that why she got into so much trouble? Could she be the kind of person Thompson was talking about? Having too much energy and drive and having no one to teach her how to channel it effectively?

"People like that need a purpose, a goal, something that keeps them constantly engaged, improving themselves. And I think colligate level sports might just be that purpose for you. I feel a person like you would thrive rather than crack under that sort of pressure. Do you agree?"

"Yeah." I said realizing something for the first time.

"Well then." He said with a smile. "I guess I'll talk to the acceptance committee about that scholarship won't I?"

I smiled and we shook hands.

Just as I was about to go he stopped me.

"Hold on a second Will."

My hand froze on the door knob and I looked over my shoulder to see him looking at me with interest.

"This is just a matter of personal interest, seeing as you Karen's son. What changed?"

"What do you mean?" I asked confused.

"I have to assume that you found something to focus on after your freshman year that caused you to turn things around. So, what drives you now?"

I knew I should have said something smart or inspired like 'living for a better future' or maybe 'track' to get some brownie points with a possible new coach. But I said the first thing that came to my mind, that I had realized earlier, and now just fell out of my mouth.

"Cali."

As soon as I said it, I knew it sounded ridiculous, even stupid, but I also knew it was the truth. She was the reason I'd stayed out of trouble when I'd started my new life. It wasn't because I wanted my mother to be happy, which I did, but running around after Cali, making sure she was safe, and all of the challenges she brought to my life was what had kept me focused. In trying to keep her out of trouble, I'd kept myself out of it too. Trying to make order of her chaos, had strengthened my resolve for my stability, which was something I probably never would developed if Aphrodite had just given me this new life for free.

"Cali?" he said confused. "What is that some sort of life choices program? Or a study group or something?" he asked curiously.

"No." I said shaking my head realizing how stupid it would sound when I said it. "She's a girl."

I wasn't sure what to make of his expression when I said this but I found I didn't really care.

I walked out of the office and spent the whole ride back home thinking as my mother and Chris both talked excitedly about the university.

My mother dropped my off at the apartment building by myself as she was going to drop Chris off at his house on her way to her evening class, and as I walked into the lobby, I saw Cali sitting talking on the phone to someone, probably Max.

"Yeah, I'll talk to you later. Love you too. Uh huh, bye."

She ended the call and looked up.

"Hey." She said grinning when she saw me. "How was the school?"

"It was nice." I said.

"You don't seem to thrilled about it." She said frowning. "Not for you?"

"No," I said shaking my head. "It was great."

"Then why are you looking so weird?" she asked frowning.

I didn't have an answer. The truth was, I wasn't exactly sure what was wrong with me. I had been offered a place at my dream school for free, and wasn't it nearly every teenagers dream to go to a university? Meet girls, go to parties, that sort of thing? But this whole time I realized I felt conflicted and I hadn't understood why until I saw her right in front of me.

"What?" she asked giving me a strange look.

"Nothing." I said shaking my head.

I realized, I didn't want to lose her. Cali had been, and still was such a huge part of my life, I wasn't exactly sure what I would do without her on the tiniest sliver of the chance Aphrodite would even let me go to college.

"Well anyways. Can you believe what she was asking me to put on?" she asked. "That girl is obsessed with pink. Like, I think she might actually have a problem. I-"

I hadn't heard a word she'd said. The next thing I knew I pulled Cali into a tight hug.

She went stiff for a second, obviously not expecting it and still a bit weirded out by the blatant display of affection, but she allowed me nonetheless to complete it.

"What's going on with you?" she asked looking up at me quizzically after I'd let go.

"Do you want to hang out?" I asked her.

"Sure." She said giving me a strange look. "What do you want to work on? I've got a history test coming up but I wasn't going to start studying until-"

"No not studying or doing homework, I mean, just, hanging out."

"Oh." She said looking surprised. "Sure. Um, what are people who are hanging out supposed to do?"

"We could go get pizza." I suggested.

"Alright."

"Good." I said for some reason feeling relieved. I didn't have to worry about leaving her now. That would come at a later date.


	28. Chapter 28

Cpov

Catching up in school was quite possibly the hardest thing I'd ever done. Will helped me with my homework almost every night, but even with his help I still had a lot to learn. I couldn't count the amount of times I'd wanted to give up but he wouldn't let me.

It got easier when he managed to get my teachers on board as well. Some of them, especially Miss Cadwell who I'd blown off earlier this year, didn't think I would stick with it, but after a few weeks of turning in my assignments and actually attending school, they were more inclined to help.

Things were easier after that.

People still talked about me at school, but I found that what they were saying was different. Instead of making up rumors about all sorts of trouble I'd gotten into, they were mainly talking about me and Will, or why they thought I'd decided to come back to school and actually try.

Probably the biggest improvement, was that Tyler was too afraid to come near me now, and Will had taken his place as my only friend at school.

If I had heard this a year ago, I would have been horrified, but life was a lot better with Will around. I never had to wonder if I was going to be alone at school that day, or walk on eggshells, or do things for his friends just to have him talk to me. He'd even taken to eating lunch with me in the library to help me catch up on school work.

Sometimes I felt guilty because it seemed like I was stealing him away from his friends, but it was hard to feel too bad because he didn't seem to mind, and for once in my life, I was actually pretty happy.

I looked forward to seeing him in the halls, or walking to school with him in the mornings, and my Dad was far less likely to start arguments with me whenever he was around. If we did end up in a fight, all I had to do was go next door.

But the best thing about being friends with Will, was the fact that Max had started talking to me again. He was hesitant at first, but like my teachers, after the first few weeks had passed and I'd proven that I was doing the work, he came around.

He'd even managed to convince his Mom to let him hang out with me a few times a week after practice, as long as Will, whom she trusted infinitely more than she trusted me, was with us.

I never found out what Will had done with the car he'd stolen that night, and I figured I didn't want to either. Same with how he knew those men. Will never explained it and I decided not to ask. For the most part, we just pretended that it never happened.

"You would not believe the outfits she used to wear." Max said as he and Will were laughing at me for my past involvements in pageants. "I'm talking feathers, sequence, and fake jewels. Dad would make her get the flashiest things, and she always hated them. She totally looked like a Barbie!"

"That's a lot of talk for a boy who knows the best way to remove liquid eyeliner." I said sourly.

We were eating at Sacchi's Diner, the place Max and I always used to go, in celebration after the qualifier meet. Will of course had place number one in his event, and Max had made an alternate for regionals, which was impressive at any year, but especially for a freshman. This was the last time I'd see him until after Thanksgiving break, so I was trying to make the most of it.

"You do realize that that information scored me a date with the hottest girl in my year right?" he asked grinning.

"You have a date?" I asked sitting up straighter while Will asked. "How could that have possibly helped?"

"I HAD a date." Max said looking at me. "But it was awful she was totally boring, I'm dating Amber now."

"Who?"

"Another popular freshman on the JV team." Will said dismissively. "But how the hell did eyeliner get you a date?"

"Most girls reject guys when they're obviously hitting on them, especially pretty popular ones because it happens to them all the time." I said, this time it was my turn to explain impatiently. "So strike up an unexpected conversation with them about something they enjoy but wouldn't think you'd be familiar with which interests them and makes you stand out. Then, when you've got the momentum going, you ask them out, before you become boring."

"Exactly." Max said pointing at me.

"Fascinating." Will said looking utterly amazed but I ignored him.

"How long have you been going out with this Amber person?" I asked frowning.

"Just a couple weeks Cali." Max said exasperated. "Would you stop freaking out about it?"

"I'm not freaking out."

"You're freaking out a little." Will agreed and Max smirked.

"How did you know about this anyways?" I asked him and he looked a little guilty.

"I mean he and I are on the same team so…" he said.

"Why you didn't tell me?" I asked him incredulously.

"Calm down Cali she's really sweet." Will said.

"Yeah Cal, chill out." Max said amused.

I glared at them. Whenever they were together, Will and Max had developed a habit of ganging up on me. Half the time it seemed as if they were something closer to brothers than teammates or friends.

"Aw we've made her upset." Max said in a babying voice.

"Shut up Max." I said while Will grinned.

Suddenly, Max's phone started to vibrate and he looked down.

"That's my Mom." He said glancing at a text. "She's outside."

"Alright." I said feeling slightly disappointed. Max's mother was bringing him to her parents for the Thanksgiving Holiday which meant I wouldn't be seeing him. "I'll see you after break."

"Yeah see you. Bye Will."

"Later." He said and I watched him as he walked out of the diner and to his mother's car.

"You know your brother has turned into quite the ladies man." Will said sounding amused. "A lot of the girls in his year have a crush on him."

"How do you know that?"

"The track team is like on giant family at a drunken Christmas party." He said then, after catching my confused expression explained. "No one can keep their mouth shut. People talk."

"Oh." I said grinning but I felt it fade. "Yeah he's just like how my Dad used to be. You know, before he went nuts. He was like catnip to the pageant moms. They all loved him."

"Where is he now?"

"Somewhere in Florida." I said shrugging. "Some travel agency wanted him to take pictures for their brochures."

"Is he gone for the whole break?"

"No idea." I said shrugging. "Look I don't want to talk about it. What are your plans?"

"Not much really. Going bowling with Chris and a few friends tonight before he and his parents go to visit his aunt, then Dave's parents are going to stay with us for a few days for Thanksgiving."

"Sounds fun." I said trying not to feel jealous while thinking of spending the holiday alone.

"You realize you're invited right?" he asked.

"Huh?"

"Yeah. My Mom is expecting you to be there."

"But, isn't it like a family holiday?" I asked uncertainly. "Wouldn't it be weird?"

"Cali, her exact words were. 'If you don't convince her to come, I will personally tie that girl to one of our dining room chairs and force her to have a decent Thanksgiving meal'."

"Why?" I asked alarmed.

"My Mom loves you Cali." He said amused. "To her you are family."

I had a hard time to keep my expression neutral after that, while I tried to keep it off my face, my heart had skipped a beat and felt lighter than air. I wasn't sure I'd managed it because Will smiled. He made no mention of my excitement however, but looked at one of the couples across the restaurant.

"Ok, what about them?"

Will had developed a bit of an annoying habit of pointing out random couples of me and testing my powers. I thought it was kind of stupid, but I put up with it because he seemed to get such a kick out of it. I felt a weight settle in the bottom of my stomach and a chill go through me. If he really knew what I was capable of though, he wouldn't be so eager to have me hone my skills. He probably wouldn't have even wanted to be in the same room as me let alone sitting in the same booth.

"Engaged, for three months, getting married in May." I said reading the couple to get my mind off of this unpleasant thought. "And the two over there are newlyweds," I said gesturing towards a couple at the bar. "And for some reason they've come to this town for their honeymoon."

"Fascinating." He said giving me an amazed look. "You see people the way I see locks don't you. Just a whole bunch of pieces that can be put together and solved."

"More or less." I said shrugging. It was a very simplified version of the process, but it got the point across.

"I don't think you realize how cool that is."

"It's not cool." I said darkly. "How is this useful to anyone?"

"It helped Max's friend." He pointed out. "Aren't those two still going out?"

I shrugged.

"And I know most of the couples you've set up at camp are still going out."

This triggered a memory I'd repressed for several years, about the first time I'd ever seen Will. What I'd thought had happened.

'But it didn't.' I thought to myself. That much was obvious when he looked away. 'What you thought had happened doesn't exist.'

"You're quite the little miss cupid."

"Don't go comparing me to my brother." I said irritated. "It will piss him off and next thing you know you've fallen in love with a shoe."

"Well what kind of shoe are we talking here?" he asked and I grinned.

"You make a good point though." He said looking around cautiously. "But seriously. Are any of your siblings this powerful?"

"Not really." I said hesitantly.

"So you've always been special." He prompted as if he knew he wasn't getting the full story.

I nodded.

"Why?" he asked interestedly.

"I don't know." I said not meeting his eyes.

Technically it was true. No one really knew why I could do what I could.

"Is that why they respect you so much?"

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning. The last time I'd been to camp I didn't feel respected as much as feared. But then again, Will had no idea why.

"Well, you should hear them talk about you. Everyone does at camp."

"Why?" I asked frowning. "I figured by now I would have been old news."

"I guess there are certain people in the world that you just don't forget." He said quietly.

"You think I'm one of those people?"

"I know you are."

I didn't know how to respond to this so avoided it by asking a question of my own.

"What does that make you then?"

"Me?" he asked and I nodded. "I'm just a regular guy with a sword and a pair of fast feet."

"Yeah." I said rolling my eyes. "Ok."

"I'm detecting a little attitude over there Parker." He said with a smirk.

"From me?" I asked innocently. "Never. "

"Ok Miss sarcasm." He said grinning. "What is it you're so eager to say?"

"You're the last person I would call regular."

"I think we could argue the same about you."

"There's nothing special about a pretty face." I said shaking my head and looking out the window.

"Cali." He said quietly. "I think we both know you're much more than that. Even if you don't want to tell me."

I didn't think much of this at first, but when I'd said good bye to him that night and got ready for bed, something about what he'd said had bothered me. It wasn't until I'd almost fallen asleep that I realized what it was. He'd known I'd lied.

Wpov

Dave's parents, Olivia and Adrian Cole, were a lot like my mom and Dave. Olivia was an excitable, loving person. She adored my mother and treated me like her own grandson. Adrian was a bit more reserved, but it was obvious he was happy to be here when they arrived.

Immediately my mother and Olivia branched off to the kitchen talking loudly about anything from the recipes they were planning to use for today day to who they were planning to vote for in the next senatorial election while Dave and his father, who was also a professor at a different university, made their way to his office, debating a controversial paper that had recently been released in their field of study.

I'd just changed the channel to the football game and just as it started, I heard a knock on the door.

"Will, could you get that?" My mother called as she frantically scrambled through drawers looking for some sort of utensil. "It's probably Cali."

I walked over to the front door, opened it, and almost did a double take. Yes, it was Cali standing outside, but she didn't look like herself. The over sized hoodies and ripped jeans I'd come to associate with her had vanished and instead she was wearing a cream colored dress with exposed shoulders long sleeves, and she'd pulled her hair back into a pretty braid that came over her shoulder.

I tried to say something, but for a moment I couldn't speak. I had to let it sink in.

"What?" Cali asked looking self-conscious. "Is it the dress? I knew I shouldn't' have worn it. I'm going to go change."

"No." I said shaking my head and trying to concentrate. "No you look nice. I was just surprised."

"Thanks." She said looking a little uncertain, and glancing at my more formal attire as well. "You look nice too."

She followed me into the apartment.

"Hello Cali." My mother said happily as she carried a massive bowl of mashed potatoes to the table.

"Thanks for inviting me." Cali said.

"Of course dear." She said with a smile while Dave, Olivia, and Adrian had poked their heads into the dining room to see who'd just walked in. "Cali these are Dave's parents Olivia and Adrian Cole. Olivia, Adrian, this is our neighbor we told you about, Cali Parker. Her father was out of town this week for work so she'll be having dinner with us."

"Nice to meet you." Cali said with a smile and Olivia lost it.

"I cannot believe how adorable you are!" She said pulling a stunned Cali into a hug.

"Calm down honey." Adrian said taking pity on Cali and separating the two.

"Will, Cali, could you set the table?" my mother asked. "Dinner's almost ready."

I was about to show Cali where the dishes were but was a little surprised when she automatically moved towards the correct cabinets.

It suddenly hit me how much time Cali had been spending here. She was getting to know our apartment as well as I did. It made me realize that my Mom was right, it wouldn't have felt right if Cali wasn't here.

I grinned as she struggled to reach the cups on the top shelf of one of the cabinets and walked into the kitchen behind her.

"Need some help?" I asked.

"Life would be so much easier if I was just a few inches taller." She said standing on the tips of her toes, and still coming up several inches short.

I laughed.

"Well that's why you have me." I said taking them down and handing them to her.

"I would say you're not around all the time, but you are."

"You got a problem with that Parker?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

She smiled and I felt my stomach tighten. I was suddenly reminded of the time I'd first seen her. It was the same kind of smile she'd given me that night.

"What if I do Silverman?" she asked playfully.

"Then I'd remind you that you wanted my help."

"Yes but are you pretending you wouldn't have been trying to do that anyway?" she asked.

I was going to respond, when all of the sudden, there was a series of loud crashes.

Cali and I both jumped, and I looked over my shoulder to see that Dave had accidentally knocked over a stack of dishes that were in the sink.

"Sorry." He said and though nothing was broken, my mother threw him an annoyed look.

Only then did it occur to me that I was surrounded by my family, and Cali was a lot closer than I remembered her being when I'd reached for the cups.

"We should go set the table." Cali said clearly noticing it too because she looked away suddenly. She seemed embarrassed.

"Yeah." I said feeling a little as if I'd been hit very hard on the head.

Thanksgiving dinner passed in the usual manner, everyone talked over one another while half watching the game at the same time, and everyone ate way too much.

I noticed Cali was pretty quiet during the meal. I wasn't sure if it was because she wasn't sure what to talk about or if she was feeling out of place, but she really only talked to me or my mother.

"You ok?" I asked her as we cleared the dishes and Dave set up a moving in the living room.

"Why wouldn't I be?" she asked setting a platter on the counter and looking up at me in surprise.

"I dunno, you're not talking very much."

"I'm not a very talkative person." She said with a slight grin.

"You talk to me." I pressed.

"Yeah well that's you." She said turning to face me and leaning against the counter.

I continued to look at her and she seemed to realize I wasn't satisfied with her explanation.

"I dunno," she said with a shrug and looking over her shoulder to where the adults were sitting in the living room. "It's just weird, you know?"

"What do you mean?"

She turned to look at me.

"I can't remember the last family dinner I've had that didn't end with someone screaming."

I felt a pang of pity go through me but I was careful not to let it show. I knew she wouldn't like it.

"Wish Max could have been here," she said quietly turning back to the sink.

I was glad she wasn't looking at me anymore, I had no idea what to say.

Eventually, we joined the others in the living room where she sat next to me on the couch and we started the movie.

It took me a while to realize it, but the movie Dave had rented, was actually the same one that was playing at Sadies house after homecoming. Just as the action scene came on, I felt a sudden weight on my shoulder and looked down to see that Cali had fallen asleep her head resting against me.

I was extremely sleepy too. I'd had way too much to eat, and unlike the last time I'd watched this movie, I was comfortable. Not on edge.

I felt my eyelids getting closer together.

Part of me wanted to stay awake and finally finish the movie, but I really was extremely comfortable.

I could just rest a second…

"Will, Cali. Wake up."

I jerked awake to see all the lights had turned on and my mother was gently shaking Cali's shoulder.

She made a confused noise but after looking around, she sat up.

"Sorry," she said when she realized she'd been hugging my arm to her as she slept.

She released me and got to her feet.

"I should probably go home." She said glancing at the clock on the wall and realizing it was almost eleven. "Thanks for having me over." She finished looking at my mother.

"Of course dear." She said with a smile. "Will, walk her home."

"It's fine." Cali said shaking her head. "I'm just next door."

But my mother gave me a pointed look and I got to my feet.

"C'mon." I said and together we walked to the hall.

Neither of us said anything until we reached her door but she seemed to hesitate before reaching for it.

"I'm glad your Mom invited me tonight." She said looking up at me. "It was nice."

"Yeah. It was."

We were standing closer than we normally would have done, but even still I had a strange urge to close the distance. I heard the elevator go off in the distance, but I ignored it too intent on looking at her.

"Sorry I feel a sleep on you." She said with an embarrassed smile.

"It's fine." I said grinning back. "You can sleep on me anytime."

She looked down but her smile grew.

The desire to be closer to her increased and I was suddenly gripped by a strong urge to lift her chin and force her eyes to meet mine, my heart beating much faster than it should have for just standing here.

I reached out, and as the tips of my fingers brushed against her skin she looked up, our gaze locked.

But before I could think of anything to say, I heard steps approaching from down the hall.

We both looked up and the moment died as Cali's father came into view, a bang slung over his shoulder, and a scowl on his face. He looked more put together than I'd ever seen him, probably because he'd been working, but his eyes glittered darkly when he spotted his daughter, showing nothing but cruelty and disdain.

This startled me. How could anyone look at their child like that? There was no affection. Even when she was most furious at me my mother had never looked at me like this. As if she hated me.

His eyes landed on me and he let out a noise of disgust.

"Wrapped another one around your finger have you?" he asked viciously to his daughter. "You're just like your mother."

She didn't respond to him, but she looked away from me.

"You'd better run while you can boy." He said coldly. "If you knew what she is, what she could do you…" his eyes flashed and Cali looked at him, terrified. "Well," he said bitterly. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

He gave Cali one last look of utter hatred before stepping into the apartment, slamming the door behind him leaving Cali and I in a silence that was almost painful.

"I should go." Cali said softly, still not looking at me.

"Wait." I said quickly trying to stop her as she reached for the door. "Cali I'm sure you can stay at my place tonight if you want. My mom won't care. You don't have to be around him if you don't-"

The words were stumbling out of my mouth as I tried to catch her arm put she easily stepped out of my grip.

"It's ok Will." She said quietly.

"It's not safe."

"I'll be fine."

Her eyes met mine and they were a clear sea green. She didn't look angry though just very sad.

"Thanks for everything." She said giving me half a smile. "Happy Thanksgiving."

"Cali," I started having no idea what I could say. All I knew was that I didn't want her going in there. Not ever again.

"Night Will." She said reaching for the door and walking through it.

The door closed and I waiting for several seconds for a shout, or the sound of something breaking, any excuse that would allow me to follow her in.

But it didn't come.

After several minutes I eventually walked back to my apartment to see the all the lights had turned been turned off. Clearly everyone had gone to bed.

I walked back to my room and glanced at the wall, wondering if Cali was on the other side, and if so what she was doing.

I hadn't bothered to turn on the light, I was planning on going straight to bed when I felt my phone vibrate.

I pulled it out of my pocket and glanced at the screen to see a notification telling me I'd been tagged in an album my mother had loaded to her Facebook page.

I opened it and saw all the pictures she'd taken tonight, including one that surprised me. It was of Cali and I, sitting next to each other on the couch, asleep.

It had attracted a lot of attention, mostly from family members commenting wondering who Cali was and if I had a girlfriend they hadn't been told about. I stared at if for a while, then, without really thinking as to why, downloaded the image to my phone.

I put it on my nightstand than changed and got into bed unable to get Cali off my mind.

Would she be ok?

I was tempted to climb out on to the fire escape, to knock on her window just to make sure everything was alright, but I resisted the urge. If there was a problem she would tell me, and she was just get upset if I tried to get more involved.

Still…

Her father's voice played in the back of my mind. I could practically feel the anger in it. His hatred for her.

 _'You'd better run while you can boy. If you knew what she is, what she could do you…'_

What was he talking about?

I rolled over and closed my eyes.

It was nothing probably. The man was nuts, he was attributing his anger at Aphrodite to someone that just happened to look like her. Cali was nothing like her mother.


	29. Chapter 29

Cpov

Time passed quickly after Thanksgiving, and before I knew it, I was saying good bye to Max for two weeks while he'd be with his mother for Christmas. I'd be joining Will at Camp Halfblood mainly because with Max gone, there was no reason to spend it with my father.

"I wish I could go." He said sullenly as we waited for his mom to pick him up from school. Max knew a little about camp. Nothing crucial of course, but from things I'd let slip during letters he'd heard about the training with swords, horse racing, and other various camp activities. "Your camp sounds amazing. All I get to do is go visit my grandma who hates me and loves all of my spoiled cousins."

"Well maybe this will cheer you up." I said grinning and reaching into my bag to pull out a thin wrapped present.

"What is it?" he asked excitedly.

"Early Christmas gift." I said grinning. "Open it."

He eagerly tore of the paper and his eyes went wide. He was holding the latest edition of his favorite game 'Olympians on Earth', where you could choose an army of the different Olympian gods and their patron cities as they tried to take over Greece.

"How did you get this?" he asked staring down at the video game in amazement. I'd bought him the first edition years ago because it was the only game I'd ever be interested in playing with him, and he'd loved it ever since. "It's not even out yet."

"I might have flirted with the boy at the store a little."

"You're evil." He said laughing while tackling me in a hug. "And I love you for it."

He let me go and reached for his back pack.

"I got you something too." He said excitedly reaching into his bag and pulling out a package that was also thin.

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"Open it and see." He said happily.

I did.

Inside was a framed picture of Max and I last summer, when I was still allowed to hang out with him outside school, standing in front a carnival ride on a peer at the beach.

"I heard you telling Will Dad ruined you copy the other day and I thought you might want to bring it to camp. Do you like it?" he asked hopefully.

"I love it." I said smiling and he looked relieved.

"Good because I didn't have a back up plan."

I hugged him again but after barely a second, we heard a car horn blast and broke apart to see that Max's mother had pulled up to the front of the school.

"Max! Let's go!" she shouted out the window.

"Bye Cal." He said dejectedly.

"See ya Max." I said knowing that however disappointed he was feeling, mine was ten times worse. "Have a good Christmas."

"You too!" he said already half down the steps. "And tell Will I said Merry Christmas as well."

"I will!" I said and the next thing I knew he'd shut the door and was gone.

I wasn't sure how long I sat there, watching the place where Max had turned out of sight, but it felt like an eternity before I heard my name being called.

"Cali!"

I looked up to see that Will was shouting out the back window of a car with his mother and step father in the front.

"You ready?" he asked. For the first time in three years, I'd finally accepted Will's offer to give me a ride to Camp Halfblood.

"Yeah." I said knowing my things were already in the trunk, we'd packed last night to avoid complications with my father.

"Then get in, we're burning day light Parker." He said and I rolled my eyes, but jogged down the car after and slid into the back seat next to him.

"How was school?" Dave asked me curiously and I knew that he was asking out of genuine interest rather than politeness. He had been helping me in school almost as much as Will had.

"It was fine." I said and for the first time it was true. "I got a b on my history paper."

He nodded in approval and while Will didn't say anything I could see his smile from the corner of my eye.

His mother pulled out of the school drive, they got into a discussion about which route to take to get to camp, while Will plugged into his iPod for the long journey a head and I had a sudden realization. This was exactly how families acted on TV shows or in the movies. Parents talking about boring stuff in the front seat while the kids got up to their own business in the back. Asking about our days and taking road trips together where no one was fighting or had to be back by eight because the siblings weren't allowed to be together after sundown.

I glanced at Will whose mind seemed to be elsewhere as he stared out the window. I never thought this was possible for a demigod. To be so normal. I'd all but resigned myself to a painful monster related death and a life of misery, and anything that seemed otherwise was a trap. But right now I felt completely ordinary, not just ordinary, but happy. All this time I'd seen Will with his perfect family, thinking it was a lie, that something would have to go wrong, or it just wasn't right. There was no way that someone like me could have that. So I pushed it away thinking I was happier being alone than trying for what he had and getting disappointed again.

But was that really true?

Here I was, and nothing had gone wrong. No one had rejected me, or lied to me. Nothing bad was happening at all, and as the next hour passed, still nothing had happened and I found myself thinking, hoping actually, that one day, I could have this too.

Wpov

"Will!"

I grinned as several of my brothers and sisters tackled me into hugs the moment I stepped into cabin eleven.

"How've you been?"

"Did you win any races?"

"I heard you got into a good school!"

"Is it true you got Cali to come back?"

Everyone went silent and I felt uncomfortable as at least a dozen pairs of gray eyes fell onto me and I knew why. Cali's charmspeak was legendary and despite being a daughter of Aphrodite, she was one of the toughest fighters in camp. It had been a couple years since she'd last come to camp, most people thought she was never coming back.

"Yeah, she's back."

Whispers broke out amongst my siblings. Cali's reputation was strange to me, most people loved her, others had no reason to dislike her, I had to admit, I didn't know much about Cali when she regularly stayed at camp. Most of the older campers remembered her as a much different person than she was, and all of her siblings seemed to adore her, which, considering the person she was now, didn't make sense to me at all. I remembered all the pictures of her when she was little, a pageant girl, a child model. Maybe that was the girl they remembered, which could have been the reason she didn't come back.

"Ok, ok stop pestering him." Said Ted pushing through the crowd. Over the past year he'd become Head of the cabin and though I loved all my brothers and sisters, he was my favorite. He'd been the first of my very few friends in my first couple years of coming to Camp Halfblood and we'd gotten into a lot of trouble together. He was the one who first ever taught me how to pick a lock so we could steal snacks from the Big House. "Scram guys. We've got to get ready for cabin inspection tomorrow. Go clean your bunks."

"Fine." they grumbled and dispersed though out the cabin.

"How are you doing Will?"

"Good. How's Katie?" I asked. Katie was Ted's girlfriend and had been head of the Athena cabin for as long as I could remember. They'd been together since before I'd even started at camp and apparently they were one of the many couples that Cali had set up in her time here that were still dating.

"She's fine. A little irritated with me at the moment though." He said grinning.

"What did you do?" I asked also feeling myself smile. When we were younger, before he'd become a counselor and had to be 'responsible', she spent half time chasing us around trying to stop us from pulling pranks on the other cabins. She was the only one smart enough to catch us. It was why he liked her. He thought it was funny when she got worked up and yelled at us for all the trouble we'd caused. He'd never admit it, but I was pretty sure that was the main reason he did it.

"Blame Jenna and Robert" he said referencing the twin brother and sister that had come to camp last summer and always seemed to be behind whatever chaos that upset camp. "They were the once who convinced me to let them break into the armory last night and hide all of the Ares Cabin's weapons all over camp with traps made by the Hephaestus cabin. It caused a fair amount pandemonium this morning. But they deserved it."

"What did they do?"

"They cornered Thomas after he'd stole their clothes as a joke and tied him to a tree in the forest to let the monsters have him. I mean, that was an extreme reaction just for a prank."

That was the weird thing about my siblings. Because our father was the patron God of thieves, were all so good at stealing that thievery was almost way of life and certainly a point of pride for our cabin. No one got too angry if their stuff went missing, it was almost a challenge to see if they could get it back without being noticed. We often forgot that the rest of the camp didn't see it that way.

Thomas was the youngest in cabin and very close with the twins. I definitely could see them wanting to retaliate, and no matter how mature he pretended to be, Ted had always hated people messing with his siblings and always approved of a good prank.

"So is it true?" he asked curiously. "You got little Cali Parker to come back?"

"Little?" I asked confused. I knew Cali wasn't exactly tall but the way he was describing her was like as if she were five.

"Well, I haven't seen that girl since she was about thirteen." He said when he caught my expression. "In my head she's still about this tall."

He raised his hand to somewhere about midway up his chest.

"Well I'm sure you'll see her tonight at the campfire."

"I doubt it, if memory serves correct she'll be surrounded by a crowd of boys the entire night."

I thought back to the first time I'd seen Cali.

"I feel sorry for those boys then." I said shaking my head.

"Why? Does she have a boyfriend or something?"

"No. But she doesn't need one."

"What do you mean?"

"Cali's a lot different now." I explained as he followed me towards my bunk and I dumped my stuff on my bed. "And I pity the boys who try and hit on her before they realize it."


	30. Chapter 30

Cpov

I closed my eyes. I didn't want to see her cabin. I knew what it looked like, but if I didn't see it, it wouldn't be real. I could delay the moment of acceptance until…

'Just get it over with.' I thought and opened my eyes. After a moment's hesitation. I stepped inside.

It was like stepping into a Barbie dream house only life size. The walls were pink, it smelled like several perfumes, and everything was cute and covered in lace. Designer bags and clothes were lining the walls and exploding out of closets. It was just as I remembered; when it came to wardrobe, we never had enough space.

The main hall was empty, though I heard several people talking and laughing from their bunks.

I glanced to my right to see that a section of the wall was still covered with pictures ranging from movie stars to other camp members my siblings thought were extremely hot. A strange shock went through me as I realized Will had been added over the past few years several times.

I was just wondering if my old bunk was still open when someone screamed.

"OH MY GODS IT'S TRUE!"

I turned to see Celeste Werner, the Head of Cabin Ten, tackle me into a hug her long blonde hair whipping me in the face, smelling like several expensive fragrances.

"Oh my gods Cali I've missed you so much! I can't believe you're here!" she said letting go of me and taking in my torn jeans, t-shirt, and ripped sneakers. "What HAPPENED to you?" she asked her eyes wide in apparent horror.

Several heads and poked out of bunk rooms at the mention of my name, and before I could answer her I was swarmed.

"What are you WEARING?"

"When was the last time you got your hair cut?"

"Where is your make up bag?"

"Is that ALL the clothes you brought?"

It seemed to go on for hours as my brothers and sisters all exclaimed over my new 'throw on whatever' look.

"This can't be allowed."

"Honey, why are your nails so short?"

"Cali you're too beautiful to let yourself go."

"We'll get you fixed right away. You'll be back to yourself in no time."

"No!" I said quickly as they started dragging me towards the salon chair in the common room. "No. I don't want a makeover."

The room fell into a dead silence as they all turned to me in confused horror.

"Why not?" one of the younger campers, whose name I remembered was name Cassidy, asked blankly. Makeovers were sort of a pass time in the cabin, everyone helped even the guys, it was their favorite thing to do.

"I just don't ok?"

They didn't look happy.

"No one I'm related to can be allowed to look like this." One of my brothers Tristan said stubbornly while gesturing at me from head to toe.

There were several murmurs of agreement.

"Enough!" I shouted and they all backed away looking scared.

Instantly I was filled with shame. Not five minutes back and they were already afraid of me again. I knew I shouldn't have come back. This just wasn't fair.

"How about I do it Cali." Celeste suggested helpfully. She'd been my best friend at camp and out of all of my siblings Celeste was by far the most down to earth. That wasn't to say she didn't wear make up or like to look pretty, but she'd always been a good head councilor, even when we were young and she'd been appointed to the job. One on one time with her meant more talking than actual make over.

"Fine." I said grudgingly knowing that it was better to get it over with now and Celeste dragged me to her room, shutting the door keeping all of our siblings out.

"Alright Cali." She said forcing me to sit down in front of the mirror and grabbing a brush. "I know what this is about."

"It's not about anything." I said stubbornly. "This is just who I am."

"You can't honestly expect anyone to believe that." She said raising an eyebrow at me in the mirror while running the brush through my hair. "Three years ago you were practically running the place. Everyone wanted you to be head of the cabin."

"Yeah, well, now you know why I turned down the job."

"So you just gave up on your appearance completely?"

"No."

"Well clearly you gave up on something." She said grabbing a pair of scissors that were resting on the counter next to the chair. "Look at these split ends!"

"There are more important things in the world than split ends." I said darkly.

"I know that." She said already starting to trim. "But self esteem is important too."

"I like who I am."

"Really?" she asked looking concerned. "Because I've heard rumors about what you've been doing outside of camp, and I can't imagine that you're very happy like that." She turned my head and began redoing layers that had grown out for the past few years.

"And what makes you think that?" I challenged.

"You don't act like you're very happy with yourself Cali. You seemed content to let the world forget about you."

I didn't answer this but I knew I didn't have to. She continued snipping away leaving my hair still very long but looking much better than it usually did.

"What if I do want the world to ignore me?" I said as she played with different hairstyles. "You know what I can do. Maybe it's better if it does."

"How much luck are you having with that?" she asked grabbing her curling iron and winding the tips of my hair around it. "Cali, look I know you're sorry about what happened, but you realize you can't punish yourself forever, right?"

Again no answer and in the time it took her to pin one of the sides back, I already barely recognized myself.

"Alright turn around." She said and I saw her reaching for a light blue bag.

"No." I said irritated. "No make up."

"You have to." She said opening the bag.

"I don't have to do anything."

"Either I do it, or they do." She said warningly gesturing towards the door where I knew my siblings were just waiting to come in and take over. I shuddered picturing bright pink eye shadow and hot pink nail polish.

"Alright." I said stubbornly. "But if I look like a pageant girl I'm going to kill you."

"Relax." She said reaching for a stick of black eyeliner. "Wearing make up won't kill you."

It didn't take long, Celeste might have been down to earth, but she was a daughter of Aphrodite, which meant she knew her way around a cosmetics bag.

"Alright!" She said excitedly. "You're done!"

I closed my eyes and turned to face the mirror, then opened them.

This time, I didn't recognize the face that was looking back at me, yet somehow, it felt familiar. I wouldn't have thought it was mine, except for the girl in the glass looked as shocked as I felt. My hair had been pulled back from my face except for a few strands framing it, with dark eyeliner and mascara bringing out my eyes, and just the slightest bit of color on my lips.

"Am I amazing or what?" she asked poking her head into my reflection over my shoulder.

"Yeah." I said feeling dizzy. This wasn't right. I felt sick. Wrong. Like I was in the wrong body.

She didn't seem to notice.

"See look how pretty you are." She said happily. "Was that so hard?"

"No." I said, but even she could hear how hollow it sounded. My tone was completely dead.

"Cali?" she asked while I continued to stare in the mirror. "Are you ok?"

I didn't answer.

I simply turned away from the mirror and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

I ignored her.

"Cali-"

But I shut the door in her face and walked out into the common area where I saw the statue of my mother. I turned to look at it, only to see the face that had so recently been staring at me in the mirror.

Why had I agreed to this? How on Earth could I have ever allowed Will to convince me to come back?

I heard someone come through the front door and looked over to see a tall girl who looked to be about my age with long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes walking through the front door. Like all of my sisters, she looked as if she could be a super model, only there was something different about her. She seemed something more than just beautiful. Maybe had gained favor with my mother and gotten her blessing.

"Mom?" she said looking confused and stopping. "Why are you here?"

"She's not." I said flatly. "Who are you?"

I'd never seen this girl before.

Her expression hardened.

"Amorette Livington" she said her eyes narrowed as she looked me up and down. "Of course there's no need for you to introduce yourself."

"Why do you say that?" I asked frowning I had the sense that she already didn't like me.

"Well who else could you be?" she asked sounding annoyed. "You're all they ever talk about here. Callista Parker, the precious little princess who looks exactly like Mom."

Wpov

Cali was pretty distant our first night. I hadn't exactly expected her transition back to camp to be smooth, but it did worry me that she didn't seem to want to talk to anyone at dinner, not even me. I could tell her brothers and sisters were worried.

I was sort of lucky I hadn't been able to talk to her then. If she'd said a word to me I probably wouldn't have been able to speak. Her siblings had forced her into make up and clothes that fit well for once, and I had to admit, for the briefest of moments when I saw her, I'd thought she was Aphrodite.

I wasn't the only one. Several people, who'd never seen Cali before, thought the camp had been visited by the goddess. But Cali's reputation was almost legendary for camp status and everyone pretty quickly figured out who she was.

Since then it was chaos. Boys were following her around like lost puppies and people gravitated towards her as if she had some sort of magnetic pull. Everyone wanted to talk to her, and if they couldn't, they just stared at her in awe. By my count alone she'd been asked out at least six times before the camp fire and I hadn't even been with her all the time.

She ignored them all, but the funny thing was, the more she ignored them, the more they wanted her to respond. I couldn't even come close to her during the campfire, she'd been surrounded by boys from Ares and Apollo all trying to impress her in various ways.

This irritated me somewhat. I was supposed to look out for her after all. None of these guys even knew her, or deserved her. They all just thought she was hot, which well she was, but there was so much more to it than that. So much more that they couldn't even begin to understand.

We finally got some alone time after everyone had gone back to their cabins when the campfire had ended. Technically we were supposed to have gone back to our cabins too, but I'd figured Cali would probably need someone to talk to after today. They rarely punished the older campers for being out a little past curfew and if they decided to punish us, well, she was worth a week without desert.

"Why did I let you talk me into this?" she groaned as we walked together on the beach. It was a little past eleven but the moon was full so we had plenty of light. Still, I couldn't help but feel on edge. Even if we were inside the protective borders of the camp, monsters had gotten in before, and night was a great opportunity to sneak up on a demigod

"Do you want to go home?" I asked her quietly.

"No." she said darkly. "But I don't want to be here either."

"Where do you want to go then?"

"I don't know." She said staring at the sand. "Somewhere I feel normal."

"Cali," I said amused. "You're in a camp filled with other half-bloods. Here you are normal."

"You think the way they treat me is normal?" she asked bitterly. "Like I'm some sort of cabin treasure or some doll that needs to be pampered and admired?"

"You don't want people to like you?"

"I don't want to be treated differently." She said angrily. "Like I'm not a regular human being."

"None of us are regular humans." I pointed out.

"You know what I mean." She said glancing up at me. "You see how my siblings act. They practically worship me, and the rest of the camp is the same. I'm so sick of it."

"I still don't see the problem here Cali. Everyone here loves you. You act like that's a bad thing."

"Because it is." She said stopping and looking up at me. "You weren't here, you didn't know what it was like for me growing up here."

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning. "Explain."

"I don't really want to go into it." She said shrugging moodily. "It's a lot to explain."

"I've got time."

She hesitated apparently gathering her thoughts before asking a strange question.

"Do you know what it's like to be treated like you're perfect?" she asked.

"Well you used to do it to me all the time." I said frowning. I'd always hated it when Cali said I was perfect. It felt wrong, like she didn't know me at all. Yet at the same time, it put on this great sense of pressure.

"But I mean by everyone." she said quietly looking away and continuing to walk. "To be so powerful that everyone automatically agrees with whatever you say, to have your siblings do whatever you want them to without arguing, to have all your friends tell you what they think you want to hear."

"That sounds amazing." I said grinning.

"It's the worst feeling in the world." She whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"Because you know that none of it's real." She said shaking her head.

"Seems pretty real to me. Everyone here loves you Cali. They were so excited you were back."

"They weren't excited I was back." She spat bitterly. "They were excited their shiny trophy had come home, so my siblings could show me off, and they could all stare at me like they always do." Her voice wavered but she continued to speak. "Sure everybody knew me, but really, growing up here, I didn't have many friends."

"That's not true." I said shaking my head. "Everyone knows you. Everybody likes you."

"And why is that?" she asked stopping again and glaring up at me. She looked angry, but behind the fury I could see years of pain. "Did they like me for me? No. Did anyone once asked me about how I felt about being paraded around like some sort of show dog? Or how I felt to be 8 years old and already expected to flirt with boys I didn't even know, and take advantage of them just to get my siblings things? Or just because they thought it was funny? Did anyone ever care about what I wanted or what I had to say? No." she said shaking her head. "I was a little kid, but they didn't care. Just like my father they used me for whatever they wanted. And all they wanted from me was to smile and be something pretty for them to look at."

She let out a humorless laugh.

"I didn't have friends not real ones anyways. I had fans. I didn't have anyone to talk to, or tell my problems, no one wanted to hear it. All they wanted was make up tips, or relationship advice, or for me to help fix them up with their crush. No matter how many fans I had here, I was always alone."

"I'm sorry." I said quietly. I remembered my first few days at camp, how confused and scared I'd been. Cali had been even younger than I was when she'd been forced to flee to camp for protection from monsters, and to feel that alone, for that long but still being forced to smile and make everyone else happy? I didn't think I could do that. Sure it was a rough transition for everyone, but at least we were allowed to be angry about it.

Now that I thought about it, I'd never seen one of the Aphrodite cabin ever freak out or upset. They were always happy, always attractive and essentially perfect. I couldn't imagine how horrible that must be, to be perfect all the time. For all their talk about love and emotions they really kept a lid on their own. I'd always thought being in their Cabin was all fun and games and reading sappy love poems. But the way Cali was speaking about it, I wondered if there was more to Aphrodite than the other cabins gave her credit for.

"I just couldn't take it anymore." She said softly looking down at her feet. "It's why I didn't come back."

"Is that why you liked Tyler so much?" I asked her quietly and I saw an uncertain expression cross her features. Had she been so sick of treated like an idol, she'd been willing to take any other form of friendship, even if it was a terrible one?

"Maybe." She said shrugging. "He was the first person who treated me like he treated everyone else. Even if he was just using me. He used everybody and it made me feel normal."

I shook my head.

"You know sometimes I really don't get you."

"What do you mean?" she asked frowning.

I opened my mouth, but hesitated. How was I supposed to say everything that was on my mind?

"Never mind." I said shaking my head again.

"Tell me."

"It's no big deal."

"I told you." She said and I sighed.

"This is going to sound really corny, but I guess I just don't understand why you want so badly to be normal, when there are so many things about you that are so amazing. I mean, do you know how many people would kill to be able to do things you can do? Or be as smart and strong as you?"

"You think I'm smart?" she asked looking up at me in shock.

"Cali, you managed to learn a semester's worth of material in all your classes in a matter of weeks." I said. "Do you not realize how incredible that is, even without dyslexia and ADHD?"

"You helped." She muttered.

"That doesn't mean you didn't learn it." I said shrugging. "You know you say you want people to see you for who you really are, but that means they have to see both the bad and the good. Sure they might not see the bad around here, but I don't think you see the good. Maybe you should take your own advice and start seeing yourself for all of who you are. Not just certain parts."

She didn't answer this and we continued to walk in silence for a while.

"I wish more people were like you." She said quietly.

"Why's that?"

"Because you know the real me. If people had bothered to get to know that person, I might have actually had friends."

I looked down at her. As horrible as it sounded, part of me was glad things went the way that they did. If Cali had remained at camp, or had had friends to keep her out of trouble, her mother would have never approached me, and we probably would have never known each other.

I watched as the wind caught her hair and she brushed it out of her face which only made me realize just how beautifully the moon light was reflected in her eyes. It was amazing that even though their color was constantly changing, they were always so perfect. They were a dark blue at the moment, like the water of the sound this very night. It was color I'd only seen once before so I wasn't exactly sure what she was feeling, but it didn't matter. I was having trouble thinking anyways.

That was another funny thing about Cali. She was a legend around camp for how she looked just like her mother, but when I saw her like this, even though I knew she looked almost exactly the same, I couldn't help but think she looked very different.

When I looked at Aphrodite, the power of her beauty was so intense, it was almost frightening but Cali was different. It wasn't overwhelming like it was with the goddess. I think the mix of her human side had evened it out to the perfect balance. The way she presented herself was different as well. Aphrodite was cool and confident, and sometimes cruel, but no matter how she tried to play it off, deep down Cali was actually very shy and kind. She hid it behind a layer of charmspeak, but I knew that Cali was actually very insecure, especially about things she wasn't naturally gifted at. But when she was confident, and let her true self show, I found myself thinking that she was more beautiful than Aphrodite could ever be.


	31. Chapter 31

Cpov

While my first day at camp had been a nightmare, there was always one activity at camp that always helped me de-stress.

"Anyone else want to go against Cali?" Chiron asked as one of the Ares boys scrambled to his feet and reclaimed his weapon, his face brick red. I couldn't blame him. It must be embarrassing for the son of Ares, the god of war, to lose a fight to the daughter of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty.

"Anyone?" he repeated but no one came forward. There were several of the older campers in the arena for advance one on one combat, and so far I'd been undefeated.

Will, the reigning champion, and also technically an instructor, was standing a few feet away smirking as the Ares boy Devon, at least I think that was his name, walked passed too humiliated to even make eye contact with him.

"Well then, I guess that means we have a new champion." Chiron said amused.

"Not bad for a girl from Cabin 10 huh?" I said grinning and walking over to Will while putting my daggers in my belt.

"Your form was off." He said shrugging.

"Don't act like you're not impressed." I said rolling my eyes. "I just wiped the floor with those boys."

"Yeah." He agreed looking down at me amused. "But they were boys. If that were a real fight, you'd be monster chow."

"That was a real fight." I insisted.

"Oh really?" he asked raising an eyebrow and grinning.

"Yes!"

"If this is real fighting, then how come you can kick all of their asses, but when it comes to fighting monster, you always need me to bail you out?"

I could tell he was kidding but at the same time I felt my cheeks redden.

"You're just jealous." I said crossing my arms over my chest and glaring up at him.

"Jealous?" he asked his grin growing. "Of what?"

"You're mad that I took your title from you."

"Oh really?" he asked again, this time his voice heavy with sarcasm.

"Yeah really."

"Let me tell you something Cali." He said his smirk returning. "You may be a champion but you're still a student. And guess who teaches this class? You wouldn't last five seconds against me."

"You want to bet?"

I didn't know why I was taking this so personally. I knew Will was a better fighter than me. He was stronger, faster, had way more experience, and a better weapon for one on one combat. But I'd just won several fights, all against boys around his size, and that were related to the god of war. If I could beat them no problem, I'd have a chance against Will, right?

"I'm not going to take your money." He said rolling his eyes.

"You wouldn't be taking it if I win." I pointed out.

By now we had attracted the attention of several of the other campers who were now all looking at Will for his reaction.

"You really think you can beat me?" he asked with a skeptical look.

I nodded.

"Alright then Parker." He said twisting his ring and his sword appeared in his hand. "Put up or shut up."

"Is no one going to stop this?" a girl from the Hephaestus cabin I recognized as Nona asked Will's brother Ted. "He's gonna destroy her."

"I wanna see how she does." He replied with a grin. "It would be hilarious to see him get his ass kicked. She's so tiny."

Will glanced at his brother at this but didn't get to say anything because then another voice spoke.

"Actually, I would like to see how she does as well." Said Chiron pushing his way through the crowd that had formed around Will and me. "Who knows? If she does well we might have to consider Callista joining a team for quests."

This Will did not look happy about, but several people began to murmur excitedly.

"Are you two ready?" Chrion asked as the campers formed a ring around Will and me.

"Of course." Will said taking a stance.

"Yeah." I said pulling at my daggers and doing the same.

"Fight!" Chiron said and for the briefest of moments, I saw that look of fierce concentration come over Will, like he got before his track meets, but then faster than I could follow, he lunged.

This caught me off guard.

I managed to dodge his attack but just barely. I stepped back and stumbled a little and suddenly I heard Will laugh behind me.

"I told you your form was off."

I ducked just in time to see him attempt to grab me and managed to twist out of his reach.

"You're faster than I remembered." He said sounding a little wrong footed as he regained his balance.

"That's not the only thing you forgot." I said managing to kick my legs around and take out his knees.

He fell but easily rolled back to his feet and took a swing at me. His sword hit my block with an ear splitting 'clang!' and several people gasped.

With pure strength he managed to push through my defense and I was forced to step back as he launched another attack.

"Stay on your toes." He said as I dodged, looking for an opening, but there were none. Just as I'd suspected, his offence was as good as his defense, there really was no question as to why he was the best.

"Are you actually trying to coach me right now?" I asked annoyed.

"Well you need all the help you can get." He said catching my wrist when I'd turned to the offensive. "I can read you like an open book."

I used my free hand to cut at his elbow and managed to break his grip, but I felt a shot of fear go through me. That was too close. None of the Ares boys had managed to lay a finger on me. I decided to proceed a little more cautiously. He would make a mistake, I just had to wait.

The next several minutes passed in what was almost complete silence. We were both so focused neither of us spoke, only continued to lung, duck, jab, and block as we fought. I'd completely forgotten the world around me. I'd never fought like this before.

He had just gained an advantage by disarming one of my blades when I had a sudden stroke of brilliance.

I feigned an attack, and just as he started a block, twisted and turned so I was behind him, then pulled him back by his shirt and held my dagger at his throat.

"I win." I said grinning and I saw everyone's mouths fall open in the crowd. Several people were murmuring and Chiron looked impressed.

"You think so?" he asked.

"How can I not? I've got you by the-" but then he dropped his sword, twisted my wrist, caught the dagger I dropped, then easily turned and pulled me in front of him so that we'd switched positions. Now he was behind me, and I felt my own blade pressed lightly against the skin on my neck.

"Seems as if you still have a little bit to learn my student." He said and I could tell from his tone he was grinning. "Let me give you a little refresher. Lesson one." He leaned closer so his lips were almost touching my ear as he said. "Never let your guard down."

I felt goose bumps erupt on my arms as my lungs suddenly decided that they didn't want to breathe.

He let me go and I realized that my heart was beating like crazy.

I turned to look at him, uncertain if he'd noticed.

"Work on your form." He said with a knowing smile. "If you stop projecting what you're going to do with your body before you do it, maybe next time I won't see that little dance move coming a mile a way." He winked. "Then maybe, just maybe, you'll have a shot at beating me."

He tossed the dagger back to me as the crowd dispersed with the exception of Nona and Ted.

"Man that was close!" Ted said walking over to his brother. "I'd thought she'd had you."

They all started heading towards the exit with the rest of the crowd, but I fell back slightly feeling awkward. I was so used to being around him all the time, I'd forgotten that Will had his own friends that he'd made in camp while I was gone. Friends that I didn't know hardly at all and might think that it was weird if I just walked along with them to stick with Will.

I hovered behind them a few feet, trying to match their pace or go slower as they left the arena. Just as I made it out of the exit however, I saw a tall blonde girl engage Will in conversation and I realized that it was Amorette, the sister I'd met yesterday who'd mistaken me for our mother.

She laughed, and tossed her hair, ignoring the other two until they left and it finally connected in my mind what she was doing. She was trying to flirt with Will.

He barely noticed it at first but then eventually smiled, clearly enjoying the attention from the pretty girl. A shot of anger with through me. Who did this girl think she was? Will was my friend, she didn't know him like I did. What on earth gave her the right to try and make him interested behind my back?

I knew this thought process was irrational. Amorette could do whatever she wanted, and so could Will, it wasn't any of my business. But when she put her hand on his arm, and pulled herself closer to him all rationality went out the window.

"I don't like her." I said glaring at the two and walking back to my Cabin so I could spend free time alone.

Wpov

"You have a visitor." Ted said sticking his head into my bunkroom during free time on Tuesday.

"If it's Amorette tell her I'm not here." I said quickly and he smirked.

Over the past couple of days one of the newer Aphrodite campers had been border lined obsessed with me. I'd been trying to be nice to all of Cali's siblings after realizing they didn't have it as easy as we other campers thought, but I guess she'd taken it the wrong way and now she was following me around like boys often followed Cali.

"No. Your stalker isn't here." said a familiar voice and I grinned when Nona Whey, head of the Hephaestus cabin, walked into the room. She was my age and a good friend, though she lived on the other side of the country we'd been on a few quests together and I had to admit, it was nice to have a demigod who could make a weapon out of a ball point pen and some rubber bands on my side. "Which is good because we've got business to discuss."

"We do?"

"Yeah. First capture the flag game of break is coming up." she said grinning. "We need to start making our alliances."

"I don't know what you're talking to me for." I said shrugging. "Our cabins always team up. It's not like you have to ask."

"It's not our cabin we're worried about." Ted said and I felt an eyebrow raise.

"Which one? Cabin 5?"

We'd always had an on again off again relationship with the Ares Cabin. For the most part we got along, but ever so often we couldn't help ourselves and we'd get a little carried away stealing their things. Usually, they didn't notice when things went missing, but when they did, their reactions were the best.

"No they joined the Apollo team after what happened with the twins." He said shaking his head.

"Well that doesn't matter that much does it?" I asked. "Not as long as Katie convinces her cabin to join."

"The Athena Cabin already agreed to join us." Nona said.

"So then what's the problem?" I asked frowning. Pretty much all of the major players had been taken.

"Cabin 10." They said in unison and I stared at them.

"Aphrodite?" I asked uncertainly.

They nodded.

"Why on earth would we ask them?" I asked frowning. Her cabin wasn't very into capture the flag. Sure they got excited about it. They helped people get ready or used their influence to forge alliances, but they rarely ever actually played.

"Usually we wouldn't." Nona said shaking her head. "But thanks to you bringing the wild card back into the mix, we can't afford not to have them."

"Who?" I asked them confused.

"Little miss charmspeak." She elaborated.

"You're talking about Cali?" I asked.

"Yeah." Said Ted with a grim look on his face. "You might not remember since she left so quickly after you first started coming regularly to camp, but when Cali was around, everyone wanted their Cabin on their team."

"Just to get Cali?"

"She almost always won." Nona said. "Think about it. She's an amazing fighter, and if she wanted, all she has to do is ask you to walk into your territory and hand over your flag, and you'd do it."

"Has she ever done that before?" I asked frowning.

"No, she usually keeps it fair, but I wouldn't put it passed her." Ted said frowning. "And from what I've seen, she's only gotten more powerful since she left camp."

I remembered the night we'd closed the door into the Underworld, and how easily she'd caused Max's friend to fall for that Kayla girl.

"You're right she has." I said. "I think only I know this, but she's learned how to control the Mist too."

"She what?" Nona asked her eyes going wide, while Ted swore.

I nodded.

"Yeah, I've seen her do it. But what does this have to do with me?"

"What are you stupid?" Nona asked incredulously.

"What?"

"Ted. You explain. I can't with him today…" Nona groaned putting her hand on her forehead.

"Will, haven't you noticed you're the only one she really talks to?"

"But I still don't get-"

"It's really not that difficult." Nona said cutting me off. "Aphrodite's Cabin has close ties with the Ares Cabin. A lot of them are friends and or going out with each other, and the Ares Cabin is mad at you guys." She said pointing at Ted and I. "Because your punk little siblings were little snot nosed brats and messed with them."

"Excuse me?" Ted asked angrily but she ignored him.

"The one thing we have to our advantage however, and that is you."

"How?"

"Cali's the single most influential person in that Cabin, even more influential than Celeste I'd say. If you can convince her to join our team her Cabin is going to follow. "

"How do you know that they'll listen to her?" I asked frowning.

"Because that's how it was always done in the past." Ted said. "Cali might not be the head of the Cabin, but she was always in charge."

"Why?" I asked frowning.

Ted shrugged but Nona frowned.

"I wondered that too." She said. "I mean it makes sense in some ways, she's really powerful, but she's not the only one who has charmspeak. So really, what makes her so special?"

Well there were a lot of thing that made Cali different from her siblings, but he had a point, large amount of power didn't always make you the head of your cabin. Personality and family pride always came into account, and Cali wasn't exactly the biggest fan of her mother. Still, they'd all wanted her as the head of the cabin, and apparently they listened to what she said. Why?

"Katie's got some crazy theory that they're hiding something about her. Something they don't want the rest of the camp to know."

They both looked at me.

"What?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing." They said very quickly and in unison.

"What?" I asked but this time with suspicion.

"Well. When it comes to knowing Cali, you're kind of the camp authority now." Nona said looking at me. "So we were kind of hoping you might be able to tell us."

"I honestly don't know." I said. "Yeah she's really powerful I can tell you that, but is there anything different about her abilities?" I shrugged. "I couldn't tell you. I don't know enough about Aphrodite's power to know what's normal for her kids and what's not."

"Yeah they like to keep their secrets." Ted said and I was suddenly reminded of the night we met and him complaining about their habit of speaking in French.

Now that I really thought about it, for as much attention as it's campers were bound to get, very little was known about Cabin 10. I'd always just assumed it was because most of their power had to do with their visual appeal, and so it was pretty face value, you saw exactly what you got so there was no need to investigate further. But I should have known better. Hadn't Cali proven me time and time again that there was so much more to her power than just her looks, and there was so much more to her? And I'd met Aphrodite herself, sure she was beautiful, but her power was also one of the most mysterious things I'd ever come into contact with. Most of the Gods, their abilities were pretty upfront, but Aphrodite herself…

I felt the hair raise on the back of my neck. Maybe there was a reason they kept certain aspects of their powers to themselves. Maybe it was something other people weren't meant to understand.


	32. Chapter 32

Thanks for all the feedback! I really do appreciate it, I haven't gotten this excited about a story in a while, you might have been able to tell from the posting binge... whoops. Anyways, I can't promise I'll up date quite as rapidly. I was sick this week and had a lot of time on my hands since I didn't have to go to class, but I should be back to school and to my internship tomorrow. The story actually is finished though, so I can update at least every few days as I fix minor things and reread for typos (I know I'm bad about I'm sorry). Anyways! I hope you enjoy. Thanks to everyone that's reviewed/favorited/followed. It really means a lot. Hope you enjoy!

~ secrethalfblood

...

Cpov

Not to anyone's surprise, it only took two days for Amorette to decide that she and Will were going to be the new power couple of the camp. She was constantly trying to flirt with him, touching him, and laughing at even the dumbest of his remarks doing everything she could to make it happen. The only problem was, Will didn't seem to be picking up on the memo.

This was kind of amusing to me, not least because Will was utterly oblivious about girls, but also because I didn't much like Amorette. She was the embodiment of everything I despised about our mother. Yes, she was very beautiful but she was also vain, manipulative, and extremely mean. She only saw her looks and powers as a means to get her way, not as a way to help people which Celeste was very adamant about not doing. She didn't listen to or think about anyone but herself, so watching her disastrous attempts to charmspeak Will and manipulate him like he would other boys felt like justice was served.

Still. She was so conceited that this didn't stop her. She was convinced he would go out with her in the end.

"I'm telling you guys." Amorette said while checking her make up in the compact mirror that seemed permanently attached to her hand, then looking back at me and the rest of our siblings as we walked back from dinner. "The way he kept looking at our table, it's so on."

"You realize he was looking at Cali right?" One of my brothers Malcolm Hernandez said. He was tall and tan with dark hair that was cut stylishly, and dark eyes. His eyes were my favorite part about his appearance. Nothing like Mom's.

"If you say so." She said in such a lofty tone we all knew she didn't believe him.

"He was." Celeste agreed.

I saw several of my siblings glance towards me, obviously wondering what my take on the situation was, but I looked straight ahead of me determinedly avoiding eye contact. I had decided to stay out of it, mainly because I didn't like Amorette very much and knew if I voiced my opinion I'd regret it immediately.

"Why would he be interested in split ends over here." She said jerking her thumb towards me. "When he could have me."

"Maybe it's because you won't shut up." I muttered and I heard a couple people behind me snicker. She didn't hear me though.

"All I'm saying is I know what a boy likes, and Will's not the type of boy to go for that." She said gesturing to me up and down.

I felt an eyebrow rise.

"He wants the varsity. Not the second string."

Several people rolled their eyes and I couldn't blame them. Amorette was under the impression that she was the prettiest girl in the Cabin and it was something she liked to lord over everyone.

I remembered how I used to feel when people first started staring at me, awkward, self-conscious, I never really liked the attention even when I put an effort in to my appearance. Amorette on the other hand, couldn't get enough.

She was the daughter of an insanely rich fashion designer and never let anyone else forget it. She was constantly playing with her long blonde hair, batting her crystal blue eyes, checking her make up, and flirting with boys.

"Speak of the devil." She said smiling slyly. "Look who's coming to talk to me right now."

We all looked back to see Will headed in the direction of our cabin.

Amorette quickly checked her hair and make-up then turned to me and said, "Don't wait up for us."

With one last arrogant smile she made her way towards Will who didn't seem to notice her at first.

"I can't watch this." Malcolm said shaking his head. "She's going to look like such an idiot."

"Aren't you going to do something Cali?" Celeste asked cautiously as if she were unsure how I'd react to Amorette talking to Will.

"You're the head of cabin not me." I said shrugging. "If you want her to stop you go over there."

"Well yeah but..." Her sentence faded but I knew what she meant.

Before she was appointed, the majority of our siblings, including Celeste herself, had wanted me to take the job of Head Councilor when it opened up. They'd always just assumed I would after being widely regarded as the most powerful in the cabin and even today many people treated me as if I was in charge. But as it turned out, no one needed to say anything. Will managed to shake Amorette off fairly quickly and walked over to me. I saw Celeste smile and she ordered the rest of the cabin to give us some space in French.

"First Sadie, now Amorette." I said amused. "I think you have a thing for blondes."

"I think blondes have a thing for me." He said with the slightest bit of cockiness and I grinned.

"Well most girls do."

"Yeah, it's kind of irritating actually. What did she say?" he asked suspiciously as my siblings dispersed, each of them looking back over their shoulder at us every so often.

"Nothing." I said waving it off and he frowned at me.

"You know that's really annoying right? When you guys speak in French. No one knows what you're saying."

"That's the point Silverman." I said smirking. "If you don't like it learn French."

"Are you offering to teach me?"

"No." I said grinning. "I still like to have some secrets from you."

"And I'd love to know what they are." He said giving me a searching look.

"Yeah I'm sure you would."

"Can you blame me Cal?" he asked and I blushed. I liked that he felt close enough to use Max's nickname for me. "Do you know how many people would kill to know what's going on in your mind?"

"Well," I said unable to stop myself from giving him the kind of smile I give people while using charmspeak. "You'd be the most likely to find out."

"See that's just unfair." He said shaking his head with a knowing grin. "You know you shouldn't be allowed to do that to people."

"Do what?" I asked innocently.

"That." He said gesturing to my expression. "Boys are already falling over themselves to get to you and when you look at them like that. It's almost cruel."

"Every boy except one." I said feigning regret. "It never worked on you."

"Well I guess I'm just special. But this," he gestured towards me again. "Is actually what I came to talk to you about."

"You came to talk to me about my face?" I asked him raising an eyebrow

"Well sort of." He said frowning. "Your powers actually. That's what brings me to the doll house. Nona and Ted want you on our team for capture the flag."

I didn't answer at first.

"It's been a while since I've played that game." I said frowning.

"Yeah, they said you were pretty good at it."

"I was." I said shrugging. It was crazy. Since the last time I'd played, my life had been parties, and running around after Tyler, getting into trouble, wondering if I was going to fail or get kicked out of high school. Now things had come full circle, where the most stressful thing I had to worry about was homework and how I was going to convince my siblings to agree to team up with whatever Cabin I chose. I felt like a little kid again.

"So…?" Will asked questioningly.

"Yeah, I'll play."

"Excellent." He said happily. "Meet Ted, Nona, and I outside my Cabin tomorrow after dinner. We can talk strategy during free time."

"Sounds like a plan."

"I'll see you around Cal." He said with one last smile, then he turned and walked in the direction of the arena where no doubt he'd gone to train during free time like he always did.

I turned and walked into the cabin, only to be bombarded by a series of questions in rapid French.

"Leave her alone guys." Celeste said sternly. "Go clean your bunks. We barely passed inspection."

Several people grumbled but no one defied her request.

"What was that all about?" I asked uncertainly watching as my brothers and sisters wandered back to their bunks several of them looking back at me with excited expressions, and whispering towards each other.

"Do you really not know?" said a cold voice and I turned to see Amorette glaring enviously at me from the common room.

"No, I don't."

"Gods you really are stupid." She said rolling her eyes.

"Will doesn't really talk to that many people." Celeste muttered while leading me away form Amorette who looked in a very bad mood.

"What are you talking about?" I asked frowning. "Everybody loves him."

"Yeah, but he if you notice, he doesn't actually talk to that many people. Just you, his siblings, and his friend Nona."

"I'm his friend."

"I know." Celeste said. "And Amorette is jealous. Do you know how long she's been trying to catch his attention? She thought she was the prettiest most powerful in the cabin and then you come along and show her up without even trying. Then she finds out that you're really close to the boy she's been trying to get interested for a while now. You can't expect her to be happy about that."

"I guess not. Still, that's not my fault."

"I know that, but this is the kind of thing you can't think rationally about."

I shrugged.

"So what did Will want?"

"Oh, he wanted us to join his team for capture the flag."

She grinned.

"I thought he would ask. That's great news. We haven't been asked to join a team in a long time, everyone will be so excited."

"I thought you guys didn't like capture the flag." I said. From what I remembered, back when I was a kid, capture the flag wasn't a very big deal for our cabin. It had taken all the influence I'd gathered over the years just to get them to agree to play.

"That was before we had you." She said shrugging. "But after you joined the cabin we'd started to like winning. People started taking us seriously."

"Really?" I asked frowning.

"Yeah." She said nodding. "You wouldn't know this, but before you came here, and after you left. Our cabin was kind of a joke. No one really respected us. They all thought were powerless vain beauty obsessed Barbie and Ken dolls that couldn't do anything but look pretty. But then they realized how powerful you were, and how many campers you helped, they didn't make fun of us as much. And now that you're back I guess people are starting to see that there's more than one side to Aphrodite."

I wasn't sure how happy I was about this and she seemed to read my mind.

"Don't worry." She said softly. "No one will find out."

"I wouldn't put it passed Amorette to tell people." I muttered darkly.

"She knows to keep her mouth shut." She said for the first time an angry expression crossed her features and I knew that she meant businesses. It took a lot to make her mad. "If she says anything, she knows what will happen."

She hesitated and then asked.

"Has it happened again? Has anyone else-" but I cut her off.

"No." I said shaking my head.

"Good," she said with a nod of approval. "Well we'd better get going. We've got a few chores to get done before the campfire tonight. I'll see you around Cali."

She gave me on last smile before walking off and I glanced out the front window to see Will had been stopped by one of the camp directors on his way to the arena.

I walked over and pulled back the curtain to see that several girls from the Apollo cabin were all sitting on a near by bench giggling and pointing at him.

A strange emotion went through me, one that I wasn't sure I recognized but I forced it out of my mind and continued to look at Will.

What we would he think if he found out about me? And what I could do? Would Amorette tell him? I knew Celeste said she wouldn't but I couldn't be so sure. She wasn't the type to think herself beneath the rules, and if it got out, who knows what would happen.

…

The first few days of camp was a blur. I was so busy practicing in the arena, tutoring greek to new campers, and giving flying lessons with the pegasi, I barely had time to sleep. Before I knew it, it was Tuesday evening after dinner, and I realized I needed to find new armor before the next game of capture the flag or I'd be cut to pieces by the other team.

Will had agreed to meet me in the armory to help me find some that worked, but I'd finished dinner a little earlier than he had so I checked out the different sizes as I waited.

"You're going to have to remind me how this is strapped on." I said when I heard the door open behind me. "Because this is way more complicated than I remember."

Silence.

"Will?" I asked straightening up from inspecting a breast plate's fastenings and turning, only to see the very last thing I expected. Instead of a six foot two eighteen year old boy, there was a tiny girl who looked no older than thirteen or fourteen with long red hair and hazel eyes that were looking at me with apprehension.

"Oh," I said cutting myself off. "I thought you were someone else."

I recognized her to be a girl from the Demeter Cabin, but I didn't know her name.

"Will Silverman?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yeah." I said wondering why she was here. She didn't look like much of a fighter, but then again neither did I so who I was I to judge? "He's my friend."

"I know." She said. "Everyone knows."

This seemed like an odd thing to say, but I let it go.

I turned to look back at the armor when she suddenly spoke again.

"How do you talk to him?"

"What?" I asked confused and was surprised to see she'd gone bright red.

"Well, I mean, boys in general." She said so quickly I could barely understand her. "I-I mean. So many girls are afraid to talk to him, and all the boys like you. How do you get them to like you?"

The question ended on a wistful note, and I was pretty sure I knew why she was asking. What she was getting at, had little to do with me.

"Boy trouble?" I asked her crossing my arms over my chest and if it were possible, she blushed even harder.

"What? No I-" but I raised an eyebrow and she looked down. "Yeah."

"What's your name?" I asked her and she looked up hesitantly, but I saw a spark of hope behind her eyes.

"Heather." She said looking a touch less anxious.

"Who's the boy?"

Again she hesitated.

"I'm not going to tell anyone." I said resisting the temptation to roll my eyes.

"Justin." She said eventually. "Justin Sprigs."

It took me a second to put a face to the name, but eventually I realized who he was talking about.

"The boy from the Apollo Cabin?"

She nodded.

I didn't know much about Justin, other than he was about a year older than she was and the popular type. He was tall, surfer blonde, and an extremely talented guitar player. About half the girls that were too young to have a crush on Will had a thing for Justin, but I could tell this girl was different. Aphrodite's children had a sense for this sort of thing, and I could tell what she felt was real. Well, as real as this sort of thing was.

"How do you know him?" I asked.

"We were best friends growing up." she said sounding embarrassed. "He used to stop girls in his grade from bulling me 'cuz I was always so little."

"Are you still friends now?"

"Yeah, but we're not as close anymore." She said. "He hangs out with the cool kids here and at school. And I guess to him I've always been that dorky little sister."

I stared at her for a moment, which seemed to make her uneasy.

With the exception of Max's friends, I hadn't played matchmaker for a very long time. I'd tried to keep myself out of other people's lives for this reason. I didn't want to be asked for advice or help about something I knew they could never really understand, and that I couldn't help but hate. It felt wrong to be promoting something I didn't even believe in, setting them up for misery, but Heather looked so desperate I just couldn't help myself.

"You want my help, don't you?" I asked and she looked fearful for a second. "What?"

"Nothing." She said quickly.

"You look scared." I pressed.

"I just didn't think you would talk to me." She said quietly. "You're so pretty, I didn't expect you to take me seriously."

"Why wouldn't I?" I asked frowning. Why did she look so afraid? Did she know?

"When I asked Amorette for help last year," she said blushing again. "She laughed at me, said I wasn't pretty enough for a boy like Justin. Then she set him up with one of your sisters."

I could feel fury burning through me, but forced myself to remain calm. I must not have done a good job of clearing my expression however, because the girl looked downright terrified now.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you I just thought-"

"Heather, come here." I said shortly.

"I think I'll g-" but she cut herself off when I motioned for her to join me.

She took a hesitant step forward, then crossed the armory towards me and I pointed to a bronze shield hanging on the wall. It had been polished so well, we could see our reflections in them.

"When you look at yourself, what do you see?" I asked her.

I saw her glance at my reflection, then back at her own, and she seemed depressed.

"My nose is too small for my face," she said defeated. "My eyes are too far apart. "And I've got all these ugly freckles. I wish I looked like y-"

"Look again." I said gesturing towards her reflection and she frowned again, but I touched the side of the shield, and suddenly her whole aspect changed. Her eyes shined with happiness and a broad smile appeared.

"Wha-what did you do?" she asked looking between me and the shield in bewilderment.

"Nothing." I said shrugging.

But, my eyes are so much brighter!" she said leaning closer to her reflection and poking it, as if to check it was real. "And my nose, and my freckles, they're actually cute."

"That's because they already are." I said and she looked at me obviously confused. "All I did was show you how the rest of the world sees you."

I let go of the shield.

"People get so used to seeing their own face they only see the flaws. They focus so much on the negative, they don't see themselves the way everyone else does."

"But Amorette-"

"Only sees flaws, even in herself, why do you think she's always putting on make up?" I asked and for the first time, Heather gave me a genuine smile. "Be more confident, and start focusing on your good qualities, not the bad, boys pick up on that."

"Do you think Justin will?" she asked. "I'm not as popular as he is. Why would he even look at someone like me?"

"What did I just say?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"Be positive?" she asked.

"Yes. You're a nice girl and you obviously care about him. He'd be lucky to have you, just don't get so down hearted. Have a little confidence guys pick up on that. You'd be surprised what signs guys miss even if they're right there in front of them."

Her smile grew.

"Thanks Cali." She said.

"If you have any other problems you know where to find me." I said turning back to the armor and I heard her leave the armory.

I heard the door shut, and found myself looking at my reflection in the shield. The slight smile that helping Heather had given me faded as I took in my appearance.

Why did I have to look so much like her?

"You know you really should take your own advice Cali." Said a familiar voice and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I turned to see Will looking at me, and he'd obviously noticed my frown when I'd seen my reflection. "You know. Looking for the positive and all. That's really inspirational stuff."

"How long have you been there?" I asked in accusatory tone, my heart still racing and he smiled. This didn't help.

"Long enough to see you acting human for once." He said his smile turning into a smirk. "I decided not to interrupt. I know you hate it when people see that you're actually pretty nice."

I glared at him.

"Very funny Will."

"See now you're all upset." He said amused while looking at me. "Actually, it's kind of cute."

"Shut up."

"Alright, I'll leave it alone." He said still sounding entertained. "I stand by what I say though."

"Which is what?"

"That you need to take your own advice, and looking for the positive things about yourself, and not what you're afraid to see." He said shrugging. "Maybe if you stopped looking for your mother in your reflection in them, you wouldn't be so terrified of mirrors."

"I'm not looking." I said stubbornly. "She's just there. And I'm not terrified of anything."

"Then tell me one thing you like about your appearance Cali." He said sounding just as stubborn as I felt.

I tried to answer, but I couldn't.

I stared at the shield and my reflection, suddenly feeling very small.

The truth was, there wasn't one thing about my appearance that I liked. I hated how my hair grew perfect no matter how many times I cut it or messed it up, I hated how my eyes gave everything I was feeling away like I was some sort of freakish human mood ring, and the rest of it was all so perfect I could have traded places with my mother and no one would have noticed. Nothing about my appearance reflected me.

"You know I wish I could do that mirror trick." He said shaking his head and I was broken from my thoughts when I felt his hand on my shoulder and noticed his reflection appear next to mine in the shield. "If you could see you, the way I do, you'd realize exactly how different from her you are."


	33. Chapter 33

Wpov

Nona and Ted were right about Cali. The second people found out that she was on our team, they were scrambling to join us. In fact, our team was so sought after, that both the Athena and Hermes cabins were able to trade away their entire chore list for the week which was unheard of.

This meant I had a lot of free time over the next few days, most of which I spent with Cali.

"How come I'm the reason you guys got such good deals." Cali asked aggravated as she watched some of the younger campers on the Pegasai, Aphrodite's Cabin was in charge of flying and ridding lessons. "Yet I'm the one who still has chores."

"You've got to take advantage when the opportunity comes." I said shrugging. "If you'd been there during negotiations, you could have been taking a nap right now. Not hoping to catch junior here when he enviably falls." I finished pointing up at the terrified boy who was riding with such horrible form, he was bound to slide off the horse any second.

"Aiden!" Cali shouted up to him. "Lean forward or you'll slide off his back!"

"I want to come down!" the boy wailed sounding close to tears.

"Then land!" she shouted back.

"I don't know how!"

"Just do what I told you!"

"Cali!" he whined. "Help!"

She sighed and made an irritated noise.

"I'll be back." She said easily jumping up on the nearest Pegasus and riding up to save him. I grinned watching her. She was a talented flyer.

I was so busy staring, I didn't realize someone had come up to me until I felt a hand touch my arm.

"We have to stop meeting like this."

"Hello Amorette," I said knowing long before I turned who the girl was.

"Well what do you know. We're in the same place **again**." she said giving me a seductive smile and placing a strong emphasis on the last word. "You know you have to stop following me around camp all the time I mean I know I'm irresistible, but it's getting a little pathetic. Especially for someone as good looking as you."

"Right." I said pulling myself out of her grip and stepping away. The only pathetic thing that was going on here was her sad attempt to flirt with me. She'd been all over me since I'd come back to camp.

This wasn't totally unexpected. A lot of girls tried to flirt with me while I was here, but I had a tendency to ignore them. Like most girls, Amorette had backed off when she realized I had no interest, but over the last couple of days she'd been unbearable. There was something about Cali being back in their Cabin that caused Amorette to feel like she had something to prove. It was like she needed to be better or something crazy like that, and getting me was the key to proving it. I didn't know who she was kidding though. If it was her verses Cali, she didn't stand a chance, no matter what the competition was.

"Don't be like that." She said latching on to me again. "You can play hard to get all you want but don't think I haven't noticed you hanging around my cabin," she gave me a dazzling smile. "You're always using your free time to spend it with us while we do our activities. Why else would you be here if you didn't want to be around me?"

"I'm here to talk to Cali." I said flatly again removing myself from her.

She snorted.

"Yeah, ok." She said sarcastically while giving me a smirk.

I ignored her, but continued to watch as Cali did a tricky maneuver that allowed her to simultaneously grab and rescue Aiden, and steer her Pegasus, without spooking the one Aiden had been riding.

"So." Amorette continued. "How long are we going to play this game Will?"

"There's no game Amorette."

"You can't honestly expect anyone to believe you keep hanging around us for Parker." She said in distain.

"Why not?"

"Because she's a disaster!" she said incredulously and I felt anger surge throughout me. "People in camp might worship her but we both know what she's really like. And besides, it's pretty obvious who you really want."

For the third time she tried to touch me, but I caught her arm.

"Don't do that again." I said quietly my tone cold. "And don't insult Cali."

She smiled for a second, obviously conceited enough to convince herself I was joking, but it faltered almost instantly and her eyes went wide when they met mine.

"The only obvious thing here is how immature you're acting. Cali is my friend, not you. In fact," I glared at her. "I have no interest in you at all. I wouldn't put up with you if you didn't happen to be around her all the time. In fact, if you weren't in the same cabin, I wouldn't speak to you at all. So get this through your head." I said dropping her hand and she looked stunned. "It's not sexy how you keep coming after me. I don't think it's cute the way you follow me around. I. Do. Not. Like. You." I said clearly. "So just leave me alone."

She stood there for a full thirty seconds in what I could only assume was shock. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was the first time in her life that a boy had turned her down.

"You've got to get over your fear Aiden." Said Cali from behind us and I turned to see Cali walking with the new camper. He was small and blonde and looked too young to be majorly affected by her appearance. "What happens if you get sent on a mission? At some point you're going to have to fly."

They'd been walking in our direction but both of them stopped when they caught my expression. The boy looked terrified and Cali frowned.

"What's wrong?" she asked but I didn't have time to answer before  
Amorette spoke.

I couldn't understand what she said, it was in French, but her tone was so cold I knew it couldn't have been good. I turned to see her walking off, her expression the picture of rage. She didn't look remotely beautiful at all.

"What did she say?" I asked looking back at Cali who expression was hard to read, but her eyes had changed to a dark green. She looked both angry and just the slightest bit worried.

"Don't worry about it." She said quietly, not taking her eyes off her sister.

"But-" I started but she cut me off.

"It doesn't concern you Will." She said shortly and I noticed that the day seemed dimmer and slightly colder. For the slightest of seconds, I was reminded of Aphrodite when she was angry.

"Are you ok?" I asked noticing that the boy next to her looked terrified. Obviously he'd felt it too.

"I'm fine." She said stiffly, turning and walking her horse to the stable. Clearly she was done training for the day. "It's a family matter."

Cpov

Over the next few days, it was hard for me to sleep. I kept having nightmares and I wasn't sure why. What I did know however, was that I couldn't get what Amorette had told me out of my mind.

"Je veillerai à sa rupture cardiaque."

 _I will see his heart break._

What did she mean?

From what Will had told me, she'd finally manage to annoy him so much he shut her down hard, but could she really be that angry?

I had to think.

I guess if you're used to always getting your way, it could make the first time you didn't a harsh reality check. I remembered how confused I'd been when I couldn't make Will do exactly what I wanted. But I'd already had a father and a brother who charmspeak wouldn't work on. But back home Amorette was an only child, and she was obviously spoiled. She'd made it clear to all of us that her dad gave her whatever she wanted, and she was very beautiful. I was sure she could get almost any boy to do anything just by flirting a little and her charmspeak did the rest.

Maybe she really hadn't had things not go her way before.

My thoughts went back to Will. For the first time I was very grateful my charmspeak didn't work on him. If he hadn't been keeping me in my place all this time, would I have been like Amorette?

'No.' I thought stubbornly. 'I'd never use my looks the way she does.'

But was that true?

How many times had I used my charmspeak or flirting to get stuff from reluctant people, or things I shouldn't have for people I barely even liked? If it wasn't for Will calling me out and making me feel guilty, how far would it have gone? I could have easily gotten completely out of control, just like her.

"You know I never thought I'd say this to you." Will said when I ran into him on the way to breakfast. "But you look like hell."

"Thanks." I said sarcastically noticing that several girls were eyeing him as they passed. I was already in a bad mood from lack of sleep, and that didn't help. "How kind of you to notice."

"I thought you didn't care what people thought about your looks." He said amused.

"I don't."

"Then why'd you get so irritated?"

"Shut up Silverman."

He grinned.

"It's been a while since you called me that. What's got you in such a mood?"

"Nothing." I said crossing my arms over my chest, still annoyed with him.

"You know I know you better than that."

"I'm just not sleeping that great lately." I muttered. "Keep having nightmares."

He stopped walking.

"About what?" he asked sharply, reacting exactly like I knew he would. "How long has this been going on? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Will you stop freaking out?" I asked him not making eye contact. "It's not a big deal."

"Of course it's a big deal." He said frowning. "Cali, Demigods don't have normal dreams you know that."

"Just forget about it ok?" I asked continuing to walk to breakfast. "It's nothing to worry about."

But I knew it that wasn't true. Will was right, Demigod's rarely had just dreams, but I wasn't going to admit that to him. Especially because the nightmares I was having were about him.

Every night was the same. I'd see Will struggling and chained trying to escape a figure emitting a faint pinkish golden glow, surrounded by a series of obstacles. Sometimes it was fire or monsters, other times it was people like Tyler or my father that separated us. I watched him paralyzed with fear, utterly useless to him with the key that could save him on a chain around my neck. The light would get brighter and creep towards him, I could feel a cold darkness closing in around me as he started to disappear. The last thing I would hear was him shouting my name, with a fear I'd never heard from Will. Then I would wake up terrified and confused, my eyes wide, and my heart racing as I tried to gain control of my breathing.

For days now, I'd been trying to figure out what the dream meant. The darkness and the key I couldn't understand, but I was pretty sure I knew what the figure of light had been, which was why the dreams didn't make any sense. How could my mother have anything to do with Will?

He didn't press me about the dreams, but he still looked worried.

"So have you made a decision about where you want to go?" I asked trying to change the subject.

"What?" he asked sounding distracted.

"For school next year." It was the first thing that had come to my mind, but I was already regretting it. I didn't like to think about next year and having deal with school without him.

"No." he said shortly and I wondered if he didn't want to think about it either.

"You should probably commit." I said in shock.

"I've got time." He said shrugging, but I knew it couldn't have been much.

"Didn't you like your Mom's old school though?" I pressed. He and his friend Chris had toured its campus.

"Yeah."

"So what's the problem?" I asked.

"Just some stuff I have to deal with." He said shrugging.

"I hate it when you get all secretive." I said returning to my bad mood. Every time I started to think I was getting to know him pretty well, it seemed like I just hit another wall. There were still things he didn't want to talk about. Especially before he moved. It just wasn't fair. He already knew everything about me, what was so important to him that I couldn't know?

"Oh calm down Cali." He said putting an arm around my shoulders ignoring the girls who were shooting me extremely jealous looks. "You probably know me better than anyone else here, even Ted."

"So?" What did that get me?

"So sometimes some things are better left unsaid."

"Like what?" I challenged.

"Well if I told you that, they wouldn't be unsaid would they?" he said with a grin and I felt my heart skip a beat. I felt my irritation with him rapidly decreasing.

"Can you answer one thing though?" I asked him already feeling heat in my cheeks as I thought about asking him this. I shouldn't have cared.

"That depends on what it is." He said cautiously, reservation in his eyes.

"It's something I've wondered since you moved in next door." I said my face burning even hotter.

"Alright." He said a hint of forced calm in his tone. "What is it?"

It took me a second before I could ask.

"Do you think I'm pretty?"

The question had always been in the back of my mind since the day we'd first seen each other. But over the past couple of days, with Amorette and all of these crazy dreams, I'd been thinking about it a lot. He was the first and only boy who'd ever ignored me when he first got to camp, he was the only one my charmspeak didn't work on, and he was the only person who from the very start, had been able to look passed my appearance.

"What?" he asked sounding confused and letting me go.

"It's just." I stammered looking down and feeling absolutely mortified. "I always wondered, you know?" I asked knowing my face must have looked like a tomato. "You're the only one my charmspeak doesn't work on. And you're the only boy I've talked to that didn't freak out or try to hit on me or, well, I thought, well I thought it might be because you didn't think I was pretty."

He didn't answer for a moment, and I felt as if I wanted to die. I was so embarrassed and when I finally chanced a glance at him his expression was hard to read. I would have said he looked concerned, if it weren't for his eyes. No one had ever looked at me like that before.

"You know what, forget it." I said shaking my head and starting to walk away. "I shouldn't have asked, it was stupid. I-"

But he caught my hand to stop me. I turned to see he was still looking at me with that strange, caring expression. It made me nervous slightly but at the same time I couldn't look away.

"You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." He said quietly.

I felt as if my lungs had stopped working. He hadn't let go of my hand, and I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do next. I wasn't exactly sure I'd even processed what was happening.

But before I could come up with a response, we heard a shout.

"Hey! Will!"

I jumped and pulled my hand away, then turned with him to see his friend and quest team mate Nona jogging up to him.

"I'll see you later." I said still a little confused.

I walked the rest of the way to the dining pavilion on my own my brain still reeling form what Will had said.

He thought I was beautiful…

My face flushed and my heart beat faster just thinking about it.

Usually I wouldn't care what a boy thought about my looks, or it would annoy me, but just like everything else with Will this was different.

I smiled.

I didn't know why I cared. I never had before, but suddenly, I felt a lot like the old me, when I was little and the days when camp and other people weren't things to be avoided.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Celeste asked as I took a seat next to her.

"Nothing." I said shrugging but smiling down at the cereal I'd just grabbed.

"You're going to have to tone it down a bit Cali." She continued. "I think you've just made half the Ares table fall in love."

I looked up to see several boys were staring at me, looking a little dazed, this often happened when I was in a good mood. My powers seemed to take on a mind of their own.

"They won't like me so much when we're playing them in capture the flag." I said my smile turning into a smirk.

"Yeah probably." She said shrugging. "But seriously," she said curiously. "Why are you so happy?"

I watched as two people, Heather and Justin, walked into the pavilion together hand in hand.

The moment Heather saw me she smiled and waved.

"I just feels like it's gonna be a good day." I said and waved back.


	34. Chapter 34

Alright. Last one for the day. Hope you enjoy!

~secrethalfblood

...

Wpov

As it turned out, Nona had wanted to discuss some strategies for capture the flag before she went on a retrieval mission to help some newly discovered demigods get to camp. She had some pretty good ideas about traps we could put around the flag, but admitted we'd need a bit more planning before we could put the plan into motion.

I didn't see much of Cali that day, but she seemed to be in a good mood whenever we crossed paths.

We stayed out pretty late after the campfire, so I expected her to sleep in this morning but I ran into her on one of the trails through the forest on my run. We weren't supposed to go in here on our own strictly speaking, due to the fact that the woods were stocked with monsters, but I had my weapon with me, and the forest was one of the few places in camp where you could be alone.

"Hey." I said in shock as I took out my headphones and looked up at her. She was sitting on an enormous bolder staring into space and seemed not to have noticed me until I spoke.

She blinked then looked down.

"Hey." She said looking a little surprised. "What are you doing in here?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I came to be alone." She said. "There's only so many times I can refuse hair and make up a day before they tie me to the salon chair, so I figured if I was gone before they woke up they couldn't ask me."

She looked like herself today, with the exception of her shorts and camp T-shirt for which I was grateful. She was still beautiful but at least I could think straight. I found that extremely difficult when her siblings got their hands on her.

"Should I leave you then?"

"No you're fine." She said shaking her head and I noticed she'd been tossing one of her daggers in an automatic matter, as if she hardly even realized she was doing it. She continued the same mechanical motion, toss, let the blade flip, then catch the handle apparently still lost in thought.

"Can I join you?" I asked.

She nodded and I clambered up the rock face, taking the seat next to her. It was still early morning and a bit chilly, so I wasn't surprised she'd brought a sweat shirt with her, but it rested on the rock behind her, and her eyes were following a cloud of mist passing through the streaks of sunlight poking between the leaves.

It was a peaceful scene. I could see why she'd chosen to come here.

"Do you think they know when we're thinking about them?" she asked suddenly, not looking at me but her eyes still in a far away place, as if she were seeing beyond the trees.

"Who?" I asked noticing her eyes were a pale green today, not like their usual shade when she was angry, this was a color I'd never seen before.

"Our parents." She said vaguely while gesturing to the sky above us. "Do they know when we think about them or do they just…"

But words apparently failed her and her sentence faded into nothing.

"I can't answer that Cali."

"Because?"

"Because I don't know." I said shrugging.

"I thought you of all people might." She said quietly. She seemed to be in a strange mood. A pensive one. Clearly whatever she was thinking about was taking most of her attention. She'd even stopped tossing her dagger.

"Why me of all people?"

"Because your Dad loves you." She said it casually but I heard a great bitterness behind her voice.

"Cali your Mom loves you."

"Yeah. Right." She said cynically. "That's why I've never seen her and she's never said anything."

"Well, Aphrodite works in strange ways." I said fairly.

"Easy for you to say." She said darkly. "I know Hermes visits you and I know he was there both time you won nationals."

"She gave you those daggers didn't she?" I asked.

Cali let out a bitter laugh.

"Yeah." She said quietly then unexpectedly threw one of them at the nearest tree with such speed, I didn't realize what she'd done until I saw it, buried half way to the hilt, quivering in the bark. If that had been a person it would have been a fatal shot. "Because that shows just how much she cares."

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning.

"Do you know when I got these?" she asked softly looking at her reflection in the bronze blade of the second dagger, then looking away as if sickened.

"No." I said honestly. Cali had had them for as long as I'd known her.

"I got them when I was nine." She said refusing to look at me but straight ahead. "There was the pageant on my birthday and I won. It wasn't the first time, but this was a huge pageant, really competitive and it came with a modeling contract for some sort of kid's clothing company. Of course my Dad was really happy. He thought the gift meant she was coming back, he told me things were going to be different, Mom was coming home and he'd go back to working in fashion as long as I kept winning."

She let out a sigh.

"Well. Clearly none of that happened. I'd never liked pageants much, but when I won Dad was happy, and obviously I preferred it when he was happy rather than, well, the way that he is, but as time passed and I continued to win, and she never came…" her eyes darkened to a deep green, always a danger sign of anger.

"That's when things started getting really bad. He couldn't take that she was never coming back and I was getting older. I hated the pageants, and all the lies he kept feeding me to get me to do them. 'Just do this one and I promise we won't fight anymore.' 'I'll stop drinking as soon as Mom comes to see you win.' But nothing."

She sighed.

"Finally, I'd had enough. I couldn't take it anymore the constant hoping, and crushing realization that she wasn't there. Eventually I realized that I'd never be good enough and I told him the truth. That Mom was never coming back, it was all just lies and denial and it didn't matter how beautiful I was, or how many times I won. It didn't mean anything."

Her voice was hollow, dead sounding.

"He didn't like that and we got into a fight and…" she hesitated for a second and it almost as if she decided against saying something before she continued. "And something happened to him. After I," her voice caught. "Well, we fought, and that was the final push that transformed him into the person you know today." She shook her head. "We were so stupid thinking she'd come back. He drank to forget-"

"And you hid yourself from anything that reminded you of her." I said softly. "Including yourself."

Suddenly all of the loose fitting clothing, the hoods, the refusal to wear make up, it all made sense. She couldn't stand to look at her own reflection and be reminded of her mother. It was almost as if when she looked in the mirror, she wanted to see someone she didn't recognize. If I was honest, I could see how to her, that might seem a relief.

"You don't know what it's like." She said shaking her head her voice breaking slightly. "To look at yourself, and simultaneously hate and miss the person you see staring back. Someone who was supposed to love you, but never cared. Instead, she stuck me with that maniac, and what does she do to try and make up for it? Gives me one birthday present, a constant reminder of all the suffering she put us through. Just because my father was an idiot, and was stupid enough to fall in love."

I had no idea what to say.

"It's so stupid." She muttered more to herself than anything. She stood up "I'm sorry I shouldn't have brought this up."

"It's not stupid Cali." I said remembering how angry I used to be with my father and catching her hand. "Don't ever apologize for how you feel."

She still refused to look at me, but allowed me to pull her back down next to me.

"Maybe you're looking at it the wrong way." I said trying to sound casual while remembering all of the times Aphrodite had appeared to me, to ensure Cali's protection.

"What other way is there?" she asked quietly.

"Well did you ever wonder why the gift your mother gave you was a weapon, when no one else in the Cabin got one?" I asked. "They all got things like necklaces that turned them invisible or watches or bracelets that could help them heal or fly or run faster, all of those gifts were to help them avoid danger, get out of the way."

"So?"

"So maybe your mom knows you're different from your siblings," I said glancing at her and she let out a bitter laugh. "You're a fighter, and that beauty wasn't the only side to you." I said thinking all the times the goddess had come into close contact with Cali, the look on her face when she saw her, but Cali didn't know she was there. "Maybe she left you on your own because she knew you could handle it. But she was never that far away."

I was proof.

"So she left me to clean up her mess for her?" she asked acidly.

"Cali, even if she was there, would you have even wanted her help?"

She gave no answer but she didn't have to. We both knew she wouldn't.

"Will?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you believe in love?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah." I repeated thinking of my mother and Dave. "Yeah I do. What about you?"

The question was automatic, but I already knew the answer. Cali spent the majority of the time I'd known her showing anyone and everyone that she didn't believe in it. But when she spoke, I was surprised.

"I don't know." She said quietly. "And I think that's what's driving me crazy."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I mean, Aphrodite's my mother, it's engrained into me to believe it, I'm biologically programed to and I want to but… I just can't." Her voice was shaking and I wondered if she'd ever spoken about this. How long had she been keeping this inside? "I see people every day, and I know they are, I pick up on it, I can sense it in your parents, in couples passing me on the street, but I just can't accept it."

"Do you want to?" I asked her before I could stop myself.

"I don't know." She said in what was barely above a whisper.

"Why wouldn't you?" I asked incredulously.

"I've seen what it's done to my father." She was softly, her eyes were pale blue, almost gray. The color I'd associated with Cali and fear.

"You're scared." I said quietly. She didn't answer but she didn't have to, the look on her face was answer enough.

She hadn't let go of my hand, and I laced my fingers with hers.

"Cali, it's alright to feel. You can trust other people. Not everyone's out to get you."

"I never thought they were," she said softly. "but people are out for themselves. Which in some ways is even worse."

Silence.

"Well, everyone except you." She said giving me a strange look.

"What do you mean?" I asked feeling uncomfortable all of the sudden.

"You're always looking out for me, even if it's not in your best interest. I used to think you had some sort of crazy motive."

"Like what?" I asked my stomach squirming with guilt.

"I dunno, like, like my well being was integral for something important to you. But honestly I feel like if there was anyone I could trust, besides Max of course, it would be you."

"You make me sound like a much better person than I am Cali." I said quietly.

"You're the best person I know."

I wanted to tell her that was stupid, I wanted to tell her the truth, but something was stopping me. If she knew the real reason I'd been involved in her life, if she knew who I was before this, and about the deal, what would she do?

She'd hate me for sure there was no question of that, but would she run away again, or just shut me out completely? Now that she'd taken down a few of her walls, I didn't think I could stand being forced out again.

I couldn't tell her. I was too weak. Instead I asked.

"Do you really trust me?"

I wanted her to think long and hard about it and I wanted her to say no. That would have been the smart thing. But a small selfish part of me, growing stronger with each passing second, wanted her to say yes. I wanted her to talk to me like this more, I wanted to know what made her tick, I wanted her to like me and feel like she could trust me.

Yes." She said softly her eyes meeting mine. They were back to their usual shade of Mediterranean blue green, only something was different about them this time. They seemed softer than usual. Warmer.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked quietly and I realized how close we were.

The world had seemed to go still. All I could focus on was her, part of me wondered if it was because of who her mother was and this was part of her power, but I found I really didn't care.

"Are you trying to tell me it's not Will?" she asked softly. She was even closer now, and I felt my brain starting to fog but I couldn't force myself out of it. My heart was racing and it skipped as she said my name, only to pound faster. It suddenly hit me what I wanted to do, the only question was, did I dare go for it?

"Yes."

"And what if I don't care?" she asked quietly.

It was as if I was thirteen again, back at my very first day at camp, and she'd smiled at me for the very first time. The world could have burned down around me and I wouldn't have noticed nor cared. She was the only real thing right now, the only thing that mattered.

Right as I'd decided to do something incredibly stupid, her eyes went wide and she quickly looked away.

"I-I've got to go." She said standing up and the world came rushing back to me.

"Alright." I said quietly but I didn't move.

She glanced at me then quickly turned away again as if frightened pulling her hand out of mine.

"You should finish your run." She mumbled letting her hair fall passed her shoulder so I couldn't see her face.

I didn't answer this time, but watched as she scrambled to get her things, then slid off the rock, pulled her dagger from the tree trunk and walked away shaking her head and running her fingers through her hair.

I didn't try to stop her. Experience had long since taught me to let her go. I stared as she disappeared between the tree trunks, hardly aware of anything around me, which is why it took me several minutes before I realized that I wasn't alone.

I turned behind me and she was there, Aphrodite herself, with a most peculiar expression on her face.

Today she was blonde and, I'm guessing because we were at camp, she was in a stunning white toga with long sleeves that fell gracefully off her arms connected by gold circlets around her bicep and wrists. As always her features were flawless, but I looked at her utterly unimpressed.

She was nothing compared to her daughter.

She smiled slyly at me, and it was as if she knew exactly what I had been thinking.

"Well well well, William." She said a hint of amusement in her tone. "What have you gotten yourself into this time?"


	35. Chapter 35

Thank you for the feedback! You guys are seriously the best. Anyways, turns out I have bronchitis so bad news for my lungs but good news for uploads. Here's the latest chapter, hope you enjoy!

~secrethalfblood

...

Cpov

I wondered out of the forest not entirely aware of my surroundings. So many thoughts and emotions were racing through me that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked sinking onto a bench near the cabins and putting my head in my hands. I closed my eyes but my thoughts continued to race. I couldn't get Will out of my head.

The way it had felt when he held me, how my heart seemed to fail when his hand was in mine, how my brain had simply stopped working when he'd been looking at me until he was the only thing that seemed real. I couldn't push it out.

What was happening?

I closed my eyes tighter, only to have memories of him force their way to the front of my mind.

"Don't think about it." I said shaking my head but I couldn't help it.

The way he smiled when he and Max were making fun of me, or the way he looked at me when we were alone. It wasn't like how other people looked at me. Strangers stared because they thought I was beautiful, people who knew me looked at me like I was crazy. Even my siblings at camp treated me differently than they treated each other, and Max was always worried that I was going to go off the rails again. But when Will looked at me I felt like me, not Cali the problem child or the pageant queen. I just felt like Cali and for the first time in years I liked being me, and just now when he looked at me in the forest, it was like the first time I'd seen him. The moment his eyes met mine I felt it, every single one of my siblings had as well.

 _"Are you using Amokinesis?" Celeste asked in French but I shook my head feeling a bit dizzy._

 _We all had the ability to temporarily influence a person's feelings of love and desire, but it never affected us. But when I'd looked at him, whatever had happened had not been one sided. I'd felt it too._

 _But the boy had looked away and back at his brother._

 _I felt a shock go through me coupled with a numb sense of disbelief. No boy had ever ignored me before. Hadn't he felt it?_

That was the first time I'd ever been confused by a boy, and Will had been confusing me ever since and now this feeling was back, even stronger than before.

Why was this happening now? With someone like Will? He was perfect. Smart, handsome, and talented, perfect girls like Sadie and cheerleaders were after him all the time. He didn't even respond to my charmspeak. Was this some sort of joke or was this my mother's revenge for trying to ignore her power? Making me feel like this about the one person I'd never been able to control or even understand. I'd thought I'd gotten passed this, trained myself not to be deceived by her.

"It's not real." I whispered. "Nothing she does is real."

I knew it wasn't, so why did I feel this way? Why couldn't I stop?

"What is happening?" I asked weakly.

"Cali?"

I looked up to see my brother Malcolm Hernandez was less than five feet away and had obviously heard me. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." I said then when he raised an eyebrow I changed my mind. "No. I don't know."

"Is it Will?" he asked.

"What?" I asked quickly. "No."

"If you're going to waste my time by lying to me," he said annoyed. "At least be a little better at it. I've got other things I could be doing you know."

"Fine." I said quietly. "Yes it's about Will."

"What about him?"

"I don't understand him." I said shaking my head. "And I don't understand why it matters to me."

He stared at me for a good thirty seconds.

"You know, people always used to think you were Mom's favorite because you're so beautiful and you've got abilities that we don't." he said and I winced. I didn't need reminding, it was bad enough when Will had said I was different from my brothers and sisters. "But I'm not so sure about that now."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I think you got such an extreme of one of her sides, that you're lacking in the others."

"I still don't get it." I said in frustration.

"That's what I'm talking about." He said giving me a critical look, as if he almost felt sorry for me. "How could you be her favorite? You're afraid of love."

Wpov

"How are you?" Aphrodite asked flashing me a brilliant smile but I'd never been less affected by her power.

"This wasn't part of our deal." I said coldly.

"A lot of things weren't involved in our deal." She said coolly as she inspected her nails. "You're going to have to be more specific."

"You know what I'm talking about!" I said angrily. "You said I only had to protect her, I was never supposed to…"

But I couldn't finish my sentence. Admitting to it out loud would make it final, irreversible.

"Never supposed to what?" she asked looking at me, her eyes flashing dangerously.

I didn't answer.

"You're a brave young man Will." She said her expression hard to read. "But slicing a few monsters does not a hero make. Real men confront their feelings. Can you say it out loud, or are you secretly a coward?"

"I wasn't supposed to fall in love with her." I said, hatred in my voice.

Finally, I could fully appreciate the loathing Cali had for her mother. Mortal lives really were a game for her and to Aphrodite I was nothing but a player on the board. So, was this my latest errand for the Goddess? Had she gotten bored of watching me run around after her daughter? Now I'd finally finished one impossible task, getting Cali's life back on track, was she simply assigning me another? Was it amusing to her to watch me struggle to love a girl who refused to believe in it? Or was it romantic in her mind? Was I supposed to try and change her? Show her that love exists or some other romantic movie bullshit that Hollywood tried to get girls to believe?

And what did this say about her relationship with Cali?

Had she really put Cali through everything, her father, being separated from her brother, and anything relating to Tyler just for this? What did that make me? Just a character in this little drama of hers? Replaceable at anytime? Did I even feel this way or was she making me? Was this just another part of our agreement?

"I really have an unfortunate job." She said sounding distracted then letting out a long-suffering sigh.

"I know the feeling." I said acidly and she raised an eyebrow.

"You know people like to blame me for a lot of things that aren't my fault." She said frowning. "Especially Callista."

"Well maybe if you didn't mess with people's emotions-"

"What you feel for my daughter has nothing to do with me." She said and for once she seemed to be giving me her full attention.

I stared at her.

"What?" I asked blankly.

"I had nothing to do with what's going on between you two."

"You can't be serious. You expect me to believe that?" I asked with a humorless laugh. "Are you insane? Are you actually stupid enough to that I would believe-"

But there was a flash of golden light and an explosion of sound as I was thrown back into the nearest tree with unimaginable force. I felt the air forced out of my lungs and I groaned as I collapsed.

"Do not forget who you are speaking to." Aphrodite said the faint rose gold aura that usually surrounded her glowing almost too bright to look at. She grew taller with each step she took towards me and her voice echoed off the trees as it grew painfully loud. Before I could even get to my feet she'd grabbed my shirt and pinned me against the tree. "I might have allowed you more license to speak your mind than others in the past, but you will give me your respect. I don't care if you are protecting my daughter," she let me go and I fell to the ground. "You are a mortal. Your life is expendable." She glowered at me. "Remember your place."

"How can you say you have nothing to do with this?" I asked pushing myself to my knees struggling to breathe. "You're the Goddess of love!"

A strange expression crossed her features and she seemed to regret her actions. At any rate, she returned to normal size and volume, and the light around her reverted to a much more bearable intensity.

"I wanted you to protect my daughter nothing more." She said crossing her arms over her chest and for some reason glaring at me. "This was probably one of my larger oversights, but I'll admit to you that this wasn't my intention. Your feeling's for her, well, you did that on your own."

She almost looked annoyed about this, and I realized that this was the first time I'd ever heard one of the gods admit they'd made a mistake. A crazy idea occurred to me. Was it possible that she was about as happy about this as I was?

"But," I started forcing myself to stand even though my knees felt weak. "How can you not be involved?"

I still couldn't believe that this wasn't some sort of crazy plan she'd had in motion. This was exactly the sort of thing Aphrodite would do.

"Demigods." She sneered with distaste and I couldn't help but think she looked less than beautiful. Her eyes flashed and I knew she'd heard my thoughts. "You all are so self centered and narrow minded. Why would I waste so much time on you? Love is a complicated force." She said. "I doubt anyone, even the gods, but me could fully understand. But my existence, it's only derived from the power of the emotions experienced by those in love. Yes, I can manipulate it like with I did with your step-father Dave, influence it, or fabricate it and change the pace of it's progress, but in the end I can do nothing to change the real thing. What you feel for Callista is real, even I couldn't change it."

I stared at her, unsure how I was supposed to feel.

Aphrodite shook her head.

"My daughter is too much like me for her own good." She said wistfully. "She's stubborn. She knows the power of love, and does not underestimate it. In fact, she alone of my current children truly understands it, even if she refuses to accept it. She's seen what it can do to people, and she'll fight it every step of the way. Anyone else would have given up a long time ago, but maybe that's why she's perfect for you."

"What do you mean?"

"There's a reason I chose you to protect my daughter." She said quietly. "Out of all the challenges this world has thrown in your life, and there were more than you realized, there's not one you couldn't face." She paused apparently to gather her thoughts. "Watching the destruction of her father has caused so much damage inside of my daughter, I'm not sure if recovery is possible. But if anyone could do it, it would be you."

I stared at her, a sense of hopelessness starting to overtake me.

This was Cali we were talking about. The girl who'd spent the last few years of her life spending all of her energy trying to remove herself from the thing she most resented which was love. How the hell was I supposed to get around that?

"So you want me to fix her?" I asked incredulously.

"I told you. All I wanted from you was to protect her." She said and I could feel her power building. This meeting was over. "What you decide to do about your current situation is up to you."

I looked away, there was a bright flash, and she was gone leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Had she been telling the truth? Was there nothing Aphrodite could do about this or was it all a lie? Maybe she thought that this was an exciting plot twist in one of her numerous love stories. It sounded like the kind of thing she would do.

Even as these thoughts occurred to me I found I didn't care.

Did it really matter why I felt this way? No. The fact was I felt it. That was all that mattered.

Aphrodite had said she wasn't sure Cali could change. Well, that was what everyone at school had said wasn't it? And Aphrodite didn't know Cali as well as I did. I'd seen just how much Cali could change.

I walked out of the forest knowing that by now it had to be time for breakfast. I walked to the Dining Pavilion lost in thought.

As negative as she may have seemed, the goddess had brought up a good point. No matter what the gods had thrown at me, monsters, magic, or missions, I had never failed and I wasn't about to back down now.


	36. Chapter 36

Cpov

It was ironic, it really was. After all the time I'd spent screwing up and doing stupid stuff, it was when I'd finally gotten a handle on my life that it started spinning out of control.

I avoided Will everywhere I went all day that day, and when I went to sleep, again I had nightmares. But for once, the nightmares weren't what woke me up.

"Where's Cali?"

"Someone get her!"

"Wake up Celeste!"

I opened my eyes feeling confused. There seemed to be a commotion in the living room. It sounded like several people were running.

"What's going on?" I asked sleepily, wincing as the light in my room turned on and several of the others in the bunks that lined the walls rose as well. I glanced at a clock on the nearest nightstand and saw it was only three thirty in the morning.

"Cali, wake up!"

I sat up to see one of my youngest brothers, Ambrose Dennings, looking at me anxiously. He had curly brown hair and deep blue eyes that were looking at me with worry.

"Why is everyone up so early?" I asked through a yawn.

"There's a problem." He said. "You need to come to the living room."

"Celeste is the head councilor, go bother her." I groaned rolling back over and hiding under my blanket.

"No it has to be you!" Ambrose said pushing me.

"Why?" I asked annoyed. Couldn't they shut the light off?

"Because the message is for you!"

"What are you talking about?" I asked sitting up again and I realized just how panicked he looked and all the voices sounded from the hall.

"Come on!" he said and with out further explanation he grabbed my hand and dragged me out into the hall.

I walked into the living room to see that everyone, even the newest campers who hadn't been around for my early camp days, was looking at me in awe.

"What's going on?" I asked hesitantly.

This behavior wasn't entirely out of the ordinary, it had happened a few times in my old camp days, like when they realized I had the ability to use charmspeak, but I'd made a point not to draw attention to myself while I was here. This hadn't happened for a while.

I saw a movement in the corner of my eye and turned to see Amorette. She too looked a little uneasy, but when she saw me, she smiled. But it wasn't a good smile, in fact, it was almost cruel. Her expression was the kind a person wore when they knew whatever was happening was going to cause you a lot of misery, and they were going to enjoy it.

"What's going on?" I asked hesitantly. "Why are you all staring at me?"

"This was in her hand." Celeste said stepping out of the crowd and gesturing towards the statue of our mother.

I looked down to see Celeste was holding out a small scroll.

It was held together by a ribbon of pink silk and a seal in the shape of a swan. Across the top, I saw my name had been written in elegant letters of gold.

My entire body went cold.

"What?" I asked weakly, feeling my heart rate increase. The only other time she'd sent me anything was when she sent me my daggers, but even then it had been on my birthday. Not just randomly out of the blue.

"What does this mean?" I heard someone whisper to Malcolm, but he shook his head, keeping his eyes fixed intently on me.

"Open it." He said quietly.

I didn't want to. I didn't want to see what she had written, or what she wanted me to do, because that was the only time my mother ever sent messages like this. With trembling fingers, I opened the scroll to see a short message in that same beautiful golden writing.

My dearest daughter

I have been more than patient

It is time you accepted your role

You know what you are

The time has come for you to choose

Will you love him?

Or will you break his heart?

You have 3 days to decide

Or the right of passage will be restored

I stared at the letter in horror, feeling my entire body shaking.

"What does it say?" someone called.

"Cali, read it out loud!"

But I couldn't. I felt the scroll slip between my fingers as my brain clouded in a distant sort of horror. As if my brain couldn't quite process the amount of fear that was coursing through me, but it was catching up quick.

I heard the scroll hit the floor, but it echoed as if it were very far away.

"Cali…?" Celeste said tentatively. "Are you ok?"

But I couldn't speak. I tried, but my body wouldn't work. I couldn't move, it had gone completely numb.

Malcolm picked up the scroll and his eyes went wide.

"No." he said quietly his voice a little desperate. "No that's not fair. She can't do this!"

"Do what?" several people chorused, but he too seemed too horrified to answer.

I knew why he was so upset.

The right of passage was an ancient, infamous tradition not just in our cabin, but for all children of Aphrodite, and it stated that all of the children who wished to gain favor with our mother, must make a person fall in love with them, then break their heart. It was one of the few traditions that existed before, and had survived through Camp Half Blood, but it had very recently died out after several heads of our Cabins refused to do it and banned the tradition.

After they felt safe enough that the right of passage was really gone, many of my siblings had entered long term committed relationships with people they genuinely cared about. Malcolm had been dating his girlfriend for almost three years, and now, if I didn't fall in love, or break Will's heart, he'd be forced to choose.

"Well." Amorette said scanning the letter after she'd snatched it out of Malcolm's hand and giving me a vicious smile. "Looks as if you're not exactly mommy's little angel any more are you Parker?" she asked.

"What does it say?" Celeste asked. We all could tell by Amorette's expression that she was loving the whole situation. I wouldn't have been surprised if she wanted the right of a passage to come back.

"She either has to fall in love with Will, or break his heart." She said her eyes gleaming cruelly. "And I think we all know what that means." She said with a twisted smile and a wicked laugh. "And if she's too much of a coward to face him, you're all screwed."

Wpov

Despite what most people thought, I wasn't oblivious to the fact that a fair amount of the girls at camp had crushes on me. I knew Cali thought I didn't understand girls due to how I handled everything that happened with Sadie, but I found that this assumption on her part was to my advantage. She thought I didn't know how to flirt, which meant unlike with any other boy who might try, if I flirted with Cali, she wouldn't get angry. She'd just assume I didn't know what I was doing. It was actually kind of adorable to see her reaction, I don't think I'd ever seen her so confused.

Over the next few days, I took my duties as an older camp member rather less seriously than in normally would have. I spent most of my time monopolizing Cali's, finding anyway I could to divert her attention to me and it was working. Instead of tutoring the younger campers in Greek, I'd convinced Cali to start teaching me French, when I was supposed to be checking inventory in the armory, I was actually helping her improve her skills with a sword, and while I usually ran training exercises in the arena, I'd let Ted take over for now. He was almost as experienced as I was and more than capable of conducting the training while I had other things on my mind.

"You're too open." I said walking up behind Cali and putting my hands on her shoulders then sliding them down to just above her elbow, forcing her arms closer together. "You keep forgetting you only have one weapon now. You don't have another blade to block an attack from the other side."

We were in the arena with several other camp members for weapons training, and while Cali was supposed to be training the younger campers with daggers and I was supposed to be training them with swords, again we'd let Ted take over. He, and pretty much everyone in camp besides Cali, had figured out why I was trying to spend so much time with her and though it meant more work for him he let me do it.

"Alright." She said allowing me to readjust her positioning and to continue my lesson.

"And your stance is too wide." I added putting my hands on her hips. "You're off balance."

"My stance is fine." She said pushing me hands away sounding flustered, her cheeks flushed.

"Really?" I said grinning, then I easily nudged the back of her knee with my foot. It gave way and she fell. Right before she hit the ground I caught her and easily picked her up.

"How's that working out for you?" I asked smirking down at her.

"Put me down." She said crossing her arms over her chest and glaring up at me.

"I can't think of a reason why I should." I said innocently.

"How about basic human decency?" she asked annoyed.

"Nah I don't think so. You're going to have to do something for me."

"I'm not doing anything." She said stubbornly.

"Then I'm not putting you down." I said shrugging.

"Fine. What do you want?"

"Teach how to say something else in French."

"Alright, what do you want to say?"

"I love you."

There was a silence. I hadn't planned to say it, it had just sort of come out, but I had to admit I was glad to finally out loud even if she didn't know I meant it.

"Why do you want to know that?" she asked looking away from me.

"Do I need a reason?"

"Je te aime." She said glancing up at me. Her eyes met mine and I felt my heart skip a beat. I felt the world around me dissolve in the way that only Cali could make it. My brain seemed to slow down, anything that didn't involve her just fell out of existence, it wasn't important. How was it possible for her to have this much of an effect on me without even trying? She didn't even know.

I set her down but I didn't let her go. My heart was pounding faster than it ever had in battle, things seemed to be moving simultaneously in slow motion and on fast forward at the same time. Nothing made sense, all I knew was that I felt as if a force stronger than gravity was pulling me towards her. I brushed her hair behind her ear and lifted her chin completely lost in her eyes. They were a color I'd never seen before, a warm, perfect blue-green.

At this point I'd abandoned rationality. Instinct had taken over and right as I'd made the decision to do what I realized I'd wanted from the moment I first saw her, I was brought back to earth by a loud clearing of the throat.

Cali and I both jumped and looked up. While most of the camp had seemed on board with the plan of giving me some space with Cali, there was only one problem.

"I'm sorry to interrupt." Amorette said lividly and I felt Cali step out of my hold. It felt as if a part of me had been separated from the rest of my body. "But aren't the two of you supposed to be helping us?"

Amorette was one of the worst fighters in camp. I knew she only went to training to flirt with boys, and while I'd always found it a little irritating, I'd never been felt as angry towards her as I did now.

"She's right." Cali said quietly, she wouldn't look at me.

"Cali-" I started but she shook her head and followed her sister towards the rest of the campers. All the time Amorette speaking to her in rapid French. I couldn't understand a word of it but I could tell from Amorette's tone that whatever she was saying was vicious. Cali didn't say anything in response. Her expression was blank, not a good sign.

The small number of Aphrodite siblings that come to the arena today had run to them and they were all arguing, still in French. Some were yelling at Amorette, others were trying to engage Cali who seemed to want to stay out of it.

They were attracting attention now, as the shouts escalated people forgot what they were doing to turn and look at the bickering siblings. Several of them were pointing at Cali now, others looking to her for what seemed like answers. Just as things were getting heated and weapons were being drawn, she snapped.

"Enough!" she shouted and even I could feel the power in her voice. Her voice rang through the arena which shook as if thunder had crashed right above it. Everyone froze.

"I don't give a damn about what she thinks!" She said so angrily that many of the younger campers, who'd never seen Cali's power before backed away in fear. "It's my choice to make. Alone."

She turned and stormed out of the arena leaving a stunned silence behind her.

Everyone turned towards the Aphrodite siblings but none of them made an effort to explain what had just happened. Not even Amorette seemed to want to talk about it.

"Cali!" I made to run after her, but she lost her temper.

"Leave me alone!" she shouted and I found myself rooted to the spot confused and unable to do anything but stare at her in a trance like state until she vanished from view and I was brought back to my senses.

It took me a second to figure out what had happened, but there was only one explanation. In her anger, her charmspeak had temporarily affected me for the first time.

I swore. That shouldn't have been possible. She must have been really angry if thing were getting this out of control.

I started to run after her, but felt someone hold me back.

"Don't."

I turned to see Malcolm, one of the older sons of Aphrodite, had put his hand on my shoulder. He looked worried, but he was one of the few of his lot that didn't look down right terrified.

"You'll just make it worse." He continued

"I know she's upset, but I can deal with it." I said trying to step out of his reach, but he didn't let go.

"Will." He started.

"Seriously, I can handle it." I said starting to get annoyed.

"No, you can't." he said darkly and I felt a flash of anger go through me. Did he really think I didn't know how to deal with Cali when she was upset?

"Look I know you think you know what she's capable of, and you probably know her better than most people in camp, and some of us even," he said gesturing towards his cabin mates. "But trust me. You've never seen her out of control. You might have seen her angry," he said quickly when he noticed me about to interrupt. "But you've never seen her like this and you won't like what you find."

"I don't care." I said stubbornly pulling away from him and walking towards the exit. Did he really think seeing her lose her temper would change how I felt about her? I'd seen it before plenty of times.

"Will." He started again chasing after me but I waved him off.

"Just listen to me!" he shouted finally catching me just partly outside the arena. Celeste had come too.

"Look we know what you're thinking." Celeste said quietly but Malcolm took the more direct approach.

"We know you're in love with her." He said and I stopped. "But the girl who left the stadium. That's not Cali."

"What are you talking about?" I asked confused and turning to look at them.

They looked at each other for a second, as if they weren't exactly sure that they should be telling me what they were about to say, but eventually Celeste continued.

"There's a legend in our Cabin." She started. "About a certain children of Aphrodite, some of our siblings, whose beauty and power go beyond the rest. Its rumored they pop up ever few centuries or so and no one's really sure why, some think it's because they're born to a jilted lover, or because the father cheated on our mother, but the actual legend say that these children are born when Aphrodite is unhappy with the state of love in the world. So if people stop believing in it or start abusing it or forgetting about it's power that sort of thing. This child or children over time have sort of gained a sense of infamy in our family. Again the stories vary but apparently they're supposed to use their power to spread true love and revive people's faith in it. All the stories agree however on one thing."

"What is that?" I asked wondering where she was going with this.

"There's one specific power that marks them in each generation. It's given exclusive to them and sometimes isn't seen for decades, even centuries sometimes." Celeste continued gravely. "That's why no one believed in the legend until recently. We've never seen it in the modern world. No one's had it or even been rumored to have it for centuries until Cali came to camp."

"What's the power?"

"It's said that their purpose in this world is to revive faith in love," she continued. "But that's not all they're meant to do. They're supposed to punish those who abuse it as well, or insult our mother. To do that, they need a power that can really get people's attention."

"You're still not telling me." I said in frustration

Celeste opened her mouth, but was apparently too horrified to speak. Tears filled her eyes and Malcolm took over.

"When she's angry enough, Cali has the power to permanently take away a person's ability to love."

There was a full minute of silence between us.

"What?" I asked blankly.

"You know what you heard." Malcolm said quietly, his expression dark as if he'd uttered something shameful, indecent. "I'm not repeating it."

"No." I said shaking my head.

There was no way this was possible. They had to be making this up, why I wasn't sure, but I knew this had to be some sort of horrible joke they were playing on me. There was no way Cali had the power to take away someone's ability to love. It just wasn't right. No demigod, not even Cali, could be that powerful. You couldn't just take an emotion.

"I know you guys can manipulate feelings and cause infatuation or crushes but," I hesitated. "But none of you can actually fabricate or destroy love, everyone knows that. Otherwise, well, what's separating you from the actual goddess Aphrodite? There's no way this person can exist. You're being stupid."

But even as I assured myself of this, I looked around at the faces of her siblings, and icy fear seemed to flood through my body as the realization hit me. Celeste wasn't lying. She was telling the truth.

"Cali, can." Malcolm said bitterly as tears sparkled in Celeste's eyes. "It's why we all do what she says, none of our siblings have ever had that power, not one that we've met anyways. Mom wouldn't have given it to her without a purpose."

"Think about it Will." Celeste said quietly. "Why do you think the people who Cali set up are still going out, even though it was so many years ago? Think how much more powerful she is than any of us. And just look at her. Do you really think it's possible for a regular mortal, demigod or not, too look like she does?"

"But she can't be-"

"She is." Malcolm said flatly. "And the sooner you accept it, the sooner you can get back to helping her. If you still want to."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked angrily.

"Being close to Cali is dangerous." He said matter of factly. "Especially now that you know what she is."

"She's Cali." I said my temper rising.

"Not when she's like this." He said his tone firm. "When she's angry like this, she's more like an instrument of our mother's wrath. Trust me, you don't want to get in the way of that."

I remembered how horrible it felt when Aphrodite had been just a little angry with me after I disrespected her and privately agreed with Malcolm. I didn't want to be facing her fury if I could avoid it.

"What set the Goddess off?" I asked wondering what on earth could have happened in the few days since I'd last seen her that could have gone so wrong.

"Actually it was Cali herself I think." Malcolm said. "Our mother wanted her to finally face up to what she was."

Celeste looked at him and I had a feeling they weren't telling me something, but I more pressing matters to worry about.

"How long have you known this?" I asked feeling as if I'd been punched in the head by a Cyclopes and was still reeling from the blow.

"We found out not long after her charmspeak developed." Celeste said the tears finally spilling down her cheeks. "None of us knew why she was so good at making couples, or why they lasted so long when she was so young, but this was back when she still believed in love. So we just thought she had a talent for it, even by our standards, but then one summer, a boy from the Ares cabin had been dating several girls at once, and was using them all saying that he loved them just to prove he could break anyone's heart. He went around talking about how Aphrodite was the weakest of all the gods, and her power was essentially useless. She was so angry anyone could be so disrespectful to our mother and the idea of love, she said he didn't deserve to feel it, ever. And she said she was going to take it away from him." Her voice trembled. "No one took her seriously, we thought she was just getting carried away with the legend we'd all heard and we were just as angry as she was. And when she went to go confront him, we thought she was just going to make him do something humiliating by using her charmspeak but-" she broke off apparently unable to continue and Malcolm took over.

"They found him that night running in the woods trying to get himself killed by one of the monsters in there. Most everyone in camp thought it was just a prank, but what Cali had done to him had driven him insane. A few days later he was sent on a mission and never came back. His team mates said when they were attacked by monsters, he didn't even put up a fight."

"And she blames herself." I said quietly.

They nodded and something in the back of my mind stirred. Someone who'd been driven insane by the removal of love.

"Her father." I said looking at them feeling my eyes go wide. "She didn't…"

Malcolm grimaced and Celeste nodded.

"We didn't know much about that incident." She said her voice shaking a little. "All we know was that it was an accident and he's still alive. She said something about getting into an argument, and it just sort of happened. She must have tried to put a stop to it however when she realized what was going on, because the effects weren't nearly as drastic. But that's how we know it was permanent. She couldn't fix him but at least he can function. After Cali was through with Justin however..."

"That's why she never left him." I said more to myself than the others. "And that's why you didn't want me following her. You're afraid she's going to lose control again and do it to me?"

They nodded.

"So what, you're just going to leave her?" I asked them in disgust.

"What are we supposed to do?" Malcolm asked defiantly. "It's not like we can do anything until she calms down, and even then if we bring it up she's just going to get angry again."

"She's your sister. You can't just let her deal with something like this on her own!" I said incredulously. I finally understood what Cali meant when she said she was alone because she was right. The second something major came her way, they all abandoned her and forced her to fend for herself.

"You've heard what she did to Justin." Malcolm said obviously trying to stay calm. "You've seen what she's done to her father. What do you think is going to happen to you if you go barging in there when she's out of control huh? You think just because you care about her you'll be protected?" he laughed bitterly. "If so then you're an idiot Will. No one is safe when she gets like this. Not even her family."

"It doesn't matter if it's safe or not." I said furiously. "You're her brother and sister, you're supposed to care about her."

"We do." Celeste said looking mortified.

"Then why have you let things with her get this bad?" I asked. "Why have none of you chosen to help?"

"She told us she didn't want it."

"Yeah well, Cali lies." I said still so angry I was shaking. "But you should have helped her anyways. That's what you're supposed to do and you're cowards if you don't."

"Where are you going?" Malcolm asked as I turned and walked towards the Cabins.

"To talk to Cali." I said stiffly.

"Are you really that stupid?" he shouted after me.

"Let him go." Celeste said.

"You can't be serious." Malcolm said indignantly. "He's going to get himself killed!"

"Maybe." She said. Her voice was almost out of ear shot now, but the last thing I heard her say ways. "But he's right."


	37. Chapter 37

Cpov

I had only cried twice in my memory. First, when I was eight and my father told me that Max's mother wasn't going to allow us to spend time together as a family anymore. And second, when I realized the horrible thing I'd done to Justin.

This was number three.

"I can't do it." I muttered. I was sitting on my bunk with my arms wrapped around my legs and my head resting on my knees. "I can't do this."

I couldn't take away Will's ability to love, doing something so horrible to him was repugnant, unjustifiable no matter what my reason might be.

But I couldn't force myself to believe in love either.

It just wasn't fair. How could she do this to me? What did she want? What more could she take? How on earth could she justify taking the one good thing in my life and using it against me?

Why did it have to be Will?

Rage filled me again and more tears slipped down my cheeks.

"This isn't me. This isn't me." I repeated softly to myself. "This is her. She's just trying to use me."

The conflict only produced frustration and I broke down sobbing again.

"Get out of my head!" I shouted furiously but of course no one answered. If she wanted to speak to me, she would have done so by now, but it was clear everything she wanted to say she'd already said.

I heard the cabin door open and I pulled my legs closer to myself. If I stayed really quiet, maybe whoever it was wouldn't hear.

The steps made their way down the hall and into my room.

"Get out!" I shouted with as much force as I could muster. The room shook with the power of my charmspeak but the person didn't move.

"No." I whispered.

There was only one person who that could be.

"Cali." Will said gently and I looked up in horror.

"No." I said again feeling panic fill me. "You need to leave."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Will you don't get it." I said backing further away from him on my bed.

"Yes, I do." He said calmly stepping closer.

"Get away!" I shouted hysterically and again the room shook. He was forced to take a step backward, but with what looked like the sheer determination of will, he threw of the charmspeak and continued walking.

"Will please." I said quietly. Time was running out. The three days was almost up. "You need to go."

"I'm not going anywhere." He said stubbornly.

"You don't understand. You're in danger."

"I know." He said looking at me. "But I don't care."

I stared at him and he took a step closer.

"You know." I said realization causing my voice to shake. "They told you."

He nodded.

"Then you know what I am." I said looking down at my hands.

"I know _who_ you are Cali." He said standing in front of me but I refused to meet his gaze. "And I don't think you'll hurt me."

"I'm a monster." I said my voice trembling as tears threatened to fall again.

"No you're not." He said.

"Don't lie." I said bitterly. "The things I've done…"

"I'm not lying."

"Why are you here?" I asked.

"Because unlike your siblings, I'm not scared of you."

I looked up.

"You're not?" I asked in disbelief.

He shook his head.

"Why?" I asked quietly. Was he insane? If he knew what I was, he knew what I was capable of, what I'd done…

"Because I know you Cali." He said softly. "You're not going to hurt someone you don't think deserves it."

I stared at him.

"Why don't you hate me?"

"Why would I?"

"I kept this from you. After everything you did for me," the tears filled my eyes again. "I still lied to you. And everyone who found out what I was, they were all terrified of me."

"I'm not." He said simply.

"But why?" I asked looking away from him frustrated and confused.

"Because I love you." He said quietly, and suddenly, it was like the whole world had stopped.

I was suddenly very aware of my heartbeat. It was increasing.

"What?" I said looking up at him as I heard it's pounding in my ears.

"I love you." He said again and I felt the air an my lungs vanish. "And I think I have from the moment I saw you. I know you don't believe in this stuff, and it doesn't make any sense. And you don't have to say anything back." He said shaking his head. "But you need to know. And I will always be here for you no matter what anyone says about you."

"Why?"

"Because that's what love is." He said quietly.

My heart was beating faster than it ever had. I couldn't speak. One word was repeating in my mind, whispering with the beat of my heart.

 _'Choose. Choose. Choose.'_

He reached towards me but I backed away.

"Will you don't understand." I said shaking my head. The voice was getting louder now. It was almost cruel.

 _'Choose. Choose. Choose.'_

"You can't be around me right now."

 _'Choose! Choose! Choose!'_

"I'm not going anywhere."

 _'_ _ **CHOOSE!'**_

I let out a cry of pain and cradled my head in my hands as my mother's voice broke into my thoughts and screamed the last word at me.

"Cali!" Will shouted in panic. I heard him reach for me.

"Don't touch me!" I said horrified looking up and seeing his hand about to touch my face. "No! Will! That's how it-"

His palm brushed my cheek and I waited in horror for the screaming. I waited for him to fall to his knees like Justin and my father had. The moment I'd touched them, the emotion had been torn straight out of their heart. But he didn't scream, he was looking at me in concern and instead, I felt something. Something I'd never experienced, but reminded me of the first night I saw him.

"Are you alright?" he asked softly lifting my chin up to look at him.

I nodded my heart was still beating like crazy but the voice was gone. The only thing on my mind was Will.

He sat on the bed next to me.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

'Choose.'

The voice was a whisper again, fading quickly.

"Yeah." I said still confused. What was going on? Why hadn't it worked?

He was still looking at me in concern.

"Why did you come find me?" I asked him uncertainly. "It was really stupid."

'Choose.'

"I told you why." He said. "And I'm never going to leave you alone. As long as I'm around. You'll never have to be."

'Choose!'

I was finding it hard to breathe. My brain was seemed simultaneously jammed but frantic at the same time. I knew what was happening, and that I had to stop it, but my body wouldn't move.

My thoughts were racing back and forth at a million miles an hour as he lifted my chin. I could still do something, there was still time…

But then his lips met mine, and any and all forms of thought, rational or irrational, died.

My brain shut off as emotion took over and my body relaxed. I slid my arms around his neck and he pulled me closer. A strange force had taken over me, leaving my knees weak and feeling dizzy. It erupted from my heart and spread through me like a wildfire causing my cheeks to flush and my heart to go into overdrive. I felt as if I could never be close enough to him, even if I could feel his heart beating nearly as fast as mine.

It was then, somewhere in the back of my mind, I realized I didn't care. I didn't care if this was an illusion. I didn't care if this wasn't real. All the anger and bitterness and confusion I'd held on to for so long simply faded away as if dissipating into the air around me as his hand pressed me closer to him while the other ran though my hair. He was the only thing that mattered to me right now and this emotion was the most powerful thing I'd ever felt. I wouldn't give it up for anything.

My mother could do whatever she wanted as long as I was with Will.

I didn't know how long we were there, it could have been eternity and I would have stayed, but eventually, we broke apart.

I expected the intensity of the feeling to go away, but it didn't. I was still frozen, breathing hard, feeling as if I'd been struck by lightening. Did he feel it too?

He didn't let go of me. He rested his forehead against mine as he wrapped his arms around me, and I could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest. I knew that this feeling had hit him just as hard.

Suddenly, I felt dizzy.

I guess the events of the past hour had caught up to me, and I was starting to see blackness at the edges of my vision.

"Cali?" Will asked. "Are you alright?"

I tried to nod, but I couldn't quite manage it. My brain was fuzzy and I didn't seem to be thinking clearly. Everything was really slow, there was one thing I was aware of though, and I tried to communicate it to him as best as I could.

"I choose you." I said softly. Then my vision went black.


	38. Chapter 38

Thanks for the reviews and well wishes! Means a lot!

~secrethalfblood

...

Wpov

I wasn't exactly sure what to make of what happened with Cali after we kissed, and the worst thing was I couldn't ask her. After Cali fell unconscious, she never woke up. Eventually, Malcolm and Celeste had come to find us and then Chiron had been informed. He had her moved to the infirmary in the Big House where I'd stayed with her all night.

Even still, she hadn't woken up.

The weird thing was, even though she passed out, she didn't seem to be in a completely unconscious state. It was obvious she was dreaming, because she kept muttering in her sleep. About what I wasn't sure, not much of it made any sense, but no matter how we tried to wake her, nothing worked.

Chiron suggested that the stress of forcing me to respond to her charmspeak and the events that had taken place after had just been too stressful for her body and mind to take. That it was taking this time to do a bit of a reboot, but he wasn't really sure. He'd never experienced something like this before. This was amazing to me considering how old he was, but considering how rare someone with a power like Cali's was, he said he wasn't that surprised.

I felt awful. And it wasn't because I hadn't slept or eaten. All this time I was supposed to be protecting Cali. It was my fault she was here, but I didn't care what Aphrodite would do to me if Cali didn't wake up. Nothing could be worse than how I felt.

I'd been sitting next to her bed through the night and finally gotten the courage to take her hand.

"Cali." I said quietly. "Please wake up."

As usual there was no response.

"We thought we'd find you here." I looked up to see that Nona had returned from her mission. She was looking at me sadly, as was Ted, his girlfriend Katie, Malcolm and Celeste.

"Go away."

"You can't stop us visiting our sister dude." Malcolm said in that 'cool guy' manner he always adopted and I was starting to really dislike.

"Watch me." I said getting up aggressively but Nona and Ted stepped in front of me.

"Will, just calm down."

"He's pissing me off."

"No, you're angry at yourself you idiot." Nona said rolling her eyes. "You think this is your fault."

"Because it is."

"No it's not." Celeste said quietly. "It's why we're here."

"What are you talking about?" I said my anger dropping immediately and looking at the Aphrodite siblings.

"Well if you'd ease up on the rage, we might be able to tell you before you choke the air out of us." Malcolm said sarcastically, and though it took most of my will power, I ignored this comment and sat back down.

"What do you mean this isn't my fault?" I asked putting my head in my hands. "I went after Cali. I pushed her too far."

"This happened last time she had an episode here too." Celeste said looking at he sister sadly. "After Cali learned about what happened to Justin, she went into this weird state. No one knew what to do, but I think it's just her brain trying to work things out."

"How come we didn't hear about it?"

"Our last head councilor wanted to keep it a secret." Malcolm said. "She and Cali were really close. I don't think she wanted anyone finding out what she was."

"But how did you keep this a secret?" I asked incredulously. "She's totally unresponsive."

"She got better." Celeste said. "After a few hours she snapped out of it. We just told everyone she was sick and couldn't go around camp for a while. I know it's hard to do but the only thing you can do is wait." She said softly.

 _Cpov_

 _I walked into the cabin feeling myself shake. Everyone here was so much older than me. What was going on? Why did I have to be here? Why couldn't I go home?_

 _I remembered the shrieks of the monsters that had attacked and the old ladies that had been stalking me until that weird goat boy told me where to go. But now that I was here… I looked around uncertainly. Was a camp full of teenagers, that were supposedly like, me safe?_

 _I looked around. There was a lot of pink and lace here. I knew the other girls in the pageants would have loved staying in a place that looked like it belonged to their favorite Barbie but didn't it bother the boys? Max wouldn't have allowed himself to be pulled within fifty feet of this place._

 _Everyone was looking at me. Ever since the campfire tonight, when I was what they called "claimed", people had been staring at me. This didn't change even when I made it to my own cabin with the people who were supposed to be my brothers and sisters._

 _Had any of them met her?_

 _The house was strangely silent, as if everyone was afraid of being too loud as they stared at me. Everything and everyone was strangely perfect, this was weird._

 _'Better than being at home.' An angry voice said resentfully from the back of my mind and I felt my stomach clench._

 _'Don't think that.' I thought quickly. 'Dad will be back to normal soon. Mom will come back. He promised.'_

 _But as I looked around and saw how many people that were related to me, I felt my certainty fade. Surely no one, not even a goddess, would have time for all of these kids._

 _I pulled my shredded jacket tighter around me. I wished that giant monster hadn't destroyed it. Dad was going to be angry. Max would want to know what happened to it. How could I explain any of this to him? Or was I just going crazy? We were all crazy?_

 _"This way." One of the older boys said shortly to me, gesturing to follow him. He was tall with dark hair and light eyes and was extremely attractive like the rest of them._

 _Afraid of what would happen if I didn't, I did what I was told not sure what to expect._

 _I as I walked behind him towards what looked like a common area in the cabin, I noticed a tall statue of a beautiful woman with long hair and stunning eyes that were both striking and terrifying at the same time._

 _Fear gripped me. It was like she was staring into my own mind and I felt something stir. It felt like anger, but not quite. Maybe power was the word but I pushed it down. Now was not to the time to be losing it._

 _"Who is that?" I asked edging away from the statue slightly and he looked back._

 _"That's Mom." He said his tone impossible to read._

 _We finally made it to a small room in the very back of the cabin that only had one bed, the only private room in the whole cabin. He knocked on the partially opened door._

 _"Vanessa. She's here." He said and I felt my stomach contract with fear. Who was Vanessa?_

 _A girl opened the door and I felt my eyes go wide. She was tall, blonde, with eyes that glittered like sapphires, and was more beautiful than I could ever hope to be._

 _I hid behind the boy. Sure she was beautiful but she was also intimidating, and I would take him over her any day. She looked like she could have been the next Miss America._

 _"Let me look at her." She said and the boy stepped aside and I was pushed roughly in front of her._

 _The girl, Vanessa, looked at me critically for a second._

 _"How old are you?" she asked._

 _"Eight." I said quietly trying to hide behind the boy again, but he grabbed my shoulder and forced me to stay put._

 _A look of surprised crossed her features and several people started whispering._

 _"You're eight?" she asked in disbelief._

 _I nodded._

 _"And you were being attacked by monsters?"_

 _I nodded again._

 _"Look at me." She said lifting my chin with her finger and forcing me to look up at her._

 _"She's got her eyes." she muttered._

 _"I noticed that too." The boy said and she glanced at him._

 _"And you say you're only eight?" she asked looking down at me._

 _"Yeah." I said quietly._

 _"What's your name?" she asked curiously._

 _"Callista." I said._

 _"Do you prefer Cali?"_

 _Another nod._

 _"Well Cali," she said her tone suddenly so much warmer, I found it an abrasive change. She smiled. "You're going to be very beautiful. Did you know that?"_

 _"I don't think so." I said looking down. My father never seemed to think so. No matter how many pageants I won he never seemed happy. "I'll never be as pretty as you."_

 _"Aw." She said pinching my cheek. "You know what Cali. I like you. I've decided to make you my latest protégé. Tessa! Teresa!" she snapped and two girls blonde and identical stepped out of the crowd lining the halls of the Cabin. "you're going to spend an hour of your free time with Cali every day and teach her everything you know. Ok?" They nodded and she turned back to me with that same sweet smile that I found disconcerting. "The twins are the best in the cabin with cosmetics. Spare time you have otherwise will be spent with me, alright?"_

 _"Why?" I asked confused._

 _She smiled._

 _"Because you're going to be our secret weapon." She said lifting my face again and inspecting it with a note of approval. "And you need training."_

 _"I don't understand." I said feeling scared. What we she talking about?_

 _"It's quite simple really. All of the other cabins have their own superstars that get to use their skills and abilities to give their cabins advantages over the others don't they?" she asked and I saw several people around me look a little uncomfortable but eventually agree. "Well, why shouldn't we?" she asked then straightened up and addressed the boy._

 _"Marcus, show Cali to her bunk. Cali, I want you to wait here for me tomorrow morning. Alright?" she asked._

 _"Ok." I said still feeling a little scared. Why did she want me to be used for anything at all?_

 _She grinned as if she knew exactly what was on my mind._

 _"We'll see what you're capable of."_

 _I didn't sleep well that night. Monsters and my father wove in and out of my dreams, all watched over by the statue of my mother._

 _The next morning, I was shunted from cabin member to cabin member, some doing my hair, others my nails, while the twins poked me with eyeliner sticks and mascara wands all under the watchful eye of Vanessa._

 _"What do you see Cali?" she asked as we stepped into the dining pavilion._

 _"Teenagers." I said honestly looking at the people running back and forth between the crowded tables. I felt far more put together than I was used to. I didn't like it._

 _I saw some of the Ares kids laughing walking in, comparing their weapons and I was tempted to ask her if I'd get a weapon, but it died when I spotted her expression._

 _"I see pawns." She said her eyes narrowed. "Every camper here is a wealth of detail Cali, and as daughters of Aphrodite we have a keen insight into that information."_

 _"So?" I asked wondering when I'd get to go to the arena._

 _"So you can use that information Cali, and I'm going to teach you how. Our cabin gets very little respect." She said coldly and I looked up at her uncertainly. "But you're going to change that."_


	39. Chapter 39

Wpov

While Celeste and Malcolm's information about Cali's condition not being unheard of after losing control made me feel slightly better, the longer that Cali remained unconscious the more the anxiety came creeping back into my mind. A full day had passed and Cali still hadn't woken up. What if she never did?

I was happiest when I was busy.

Though I never quite forgot about Cali's current state it was nice to have other things to think about.

It didn't help that people were bombarding me with questions or that wherever I ran into her, Amorette smirked as if she knew something I didn't. I didn't care what anyone said. If she made even one joke about Cali or her situation, I was going to lose it. Fortunately for Amorette, she seemed to know when to keep her mouth shut.

Finally, Friday rolled around, but I didn't find capture the flag much fun. Even though my team won and I'd gotten the flag, I couldn't help but picture what it had been like if Cali and I had gotten it working together. Anything less than that just seemed like a disappointment.

I was so disheartened I didn't even bother celebrating on the beach with the others after the game. I just went straight back to the Big House to go check on Cali.

"She's not awake yet." Chiron said as I stepped through the door, before I could even ask.

"Can I still see her?" I asked him somewhat desperately.

"If you want." He said gesturing towards the door of the infirmary to which I quickly crossed the room and went through.

Cali was the only one in here for now, the wounded from the game had evidentially been treated and had been sent on their way.

She was being over looked by a nymph but when she saw me she bowed out of the room only to give what I assume she thought was respectful privacy. If I was honest I didn't really care if she was there or not. I just wanted Cali to wake up.

I'd been in such a hurry to see her again, I hadn't even taken off my armor. I set my helmet on her bedside table

"Hey Cal." I said sitting in the chair next to her bed.

A part of my heart broke like I knew it would when there was no response. I took her hand and though it as warm. It was limp and almost lifeless.

"We won today." I said trying to sound cheerful. "All your brothers and sisters were excited about it, Ted and Nona were too. I got the flag but I-"

My throat seemed to tighten.

"I just wish you were there." I said quietly. "Things are different without you around. They're not as fun."

I wasn't exactly sure how it happened, but over the past few weeks Cali had become something more than my best friend. I spent almost all my time with her, and now she was gone, I didn't know what to do with myself. She kept me on my toes, she made me laugh, now that she was gone it was hard to believe this was happening at camp, but I was bored.

"I really miss you Cali." I said quietly

As usual she didn't respond and I looked at her. The longer I looked, the more emotions began to swirl through me until I couldn't take it any longer. Before long it felt as if something were stuck in my throat and I felt a stinging in my eyes.

I looked away.

What was wrong with me?

"There's no need for you to make a fool of yourself William." Said a familiar voice softly. Had she really come here? Now of all times? "She will wake up."

Aphrodite was sitting on the edge of her Cali's bed, looking down at her daughter, her expression not quite sad but something close to it. Maybe concerned?

She looked different from any form I'd seen her so far. She looked older, maybe mid thirties with curly red hair and brown eyes that were trained on her daughter. She was beautiful, but in a different sort of sense. The way she was looking Cali, was almost maternal.

"This is your fault." I said angrily.

"That I won't disagree with." She said turning to look at me.

"Then wake her up." I said stiffly.

"I can't." she said.

"But you said this was your fault!" I nearly shouted. "If you can't fix it, who can?"

"Only she can." She said unconcerned with my anger and looking back at Cali.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sure you of all people would agree that my daughter is a complicated person."

I let out a humorless laugh.

"That's putting it mildly."

"Quite." She said with a slight smile. "Well my daughter has always struggled accepting the role I'd given to her."

"Why did you give it to her?" I asked. I knew I wasn't supposed to question the Gods, but for someone who was supposedly epicenters of divine wisdom and power, it seemed like a pretty big lapse in judgment.

She ignored me.

"But that seems to be a common trait among my favorites." She said quietly while looking back at Cali. "The power she's been given can be…" she paused. "Difficult to manage, and unless she's committed herself fully to using it, the conflict can be too much for a mortal to bare. She just needs some rest." She said quietly while gently putting her hand on her daughter's. "Nothing I can do will help. Only she can make her peace with this. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't glad you were here with her. This much power can be… distracting. And if she loses focus it's nice to know you'll be there giving her some stability until she can sort it all out."

"Is this why you wanted me looking after her?" I asked her quietly. "Because you didn't want to lose your weapon?"

"I didn't want to lose my daughter." She said. "People often say I'm many things, but they almost always forget a mother."

She brushed Cali's hair away from her face.

"She really is beautiful." She said softly but then a great sadness crossed her features. "I only wish I could have given her more."

 _Cpov_

 _A year had passed since Vanessa had decided to teach me everything she knew, which was a lot. In the few weeks I was here over breaks, I'd not only learned how to fight, but how to read people as well. Vanessa and my siblings had taught me everything they knew and made sure I excelled at it. Fashion, hair, make up, and most importantly how to manipulate people's emotions. I knew everything there was to know about everyone who mattered as Vanessa put it._

 _"Well?" she asked expectantly as she braided my hair and we scanned the students in the arena. She picked this venue for my lesson because specifically because of what was going on. People were fighting, discussing battle strategies, and inspecting their weapons or their armor. Love was the last thing on their minds, which made my job harder._

 _I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to ignore the jolts of pain as she bobby pins she was using pushed against my scalp. I opened them and looked around at the people again._

 _"Chester in the Hecate cabin has a crush on Jenny from the Iris cabin but she's dating Dean, one of our brothers. The new camper from Apollo."_

 _"What's his name?" she asked coolly._

 _"I'm not sure." I said quietly wincing as she growled._

 _"Try harder. Names are something you need to know." Her tone was menacing._

 _I thought._

 _"Allen." I said quietly. "His name is Allen."_

 _"What about him?" she pressed her expression unchanged._

 _"He's got a girlfriend back home. The rest are single with no significant affections."_

 _"Good." She said but she didn't smile as she tied off the braid. She continued looking around. "But not perfect. You missed the couple in the back." She gestured towards two latecomers who were walking in hand in hand. "You need to be perfect. Or have you learned nothing from me Cali?"_

 _I grimaced. The strange thing about Vanessa was that when it came to being a demigod, she wasn't that particularly powerful. I know lots of people wondered why she was the head of our cabin, but they didn't know her like I knew her. Though she didn't have charmspeak or any sort of remarkable skill or power, Vanessa was a master of manipulation. And she used people's constant underestimation of her to her advantage._

 _"You realize how important this is right?" she asked as a bell rang throughout the campgrounds._

 _I nodded._

 _"You are the next generation Cali." She said. "The camp thinks our cabin and our siblings are a joke, that we're not a threat. They've got no respect for our mother, but unlike me, you actually have the power to do something about it. But you're never going to know what to do with that power unless you can control it. And no one will respect you or our brothers and sisters if you don't use it to your advantage. And you know there's no one better to help you with that than me."_

 _"I know."_

 _"Good." She said giving me a strange look._

 _I stood up._

 _"Where do you think you're going?" she asked raising an eyebrow. "Sit back down."_

 _"The bell rang. Aren't we supposed to be doing chores?"_

 _"I've got someone covering for you."_

 _"They're ok with that?"_

 _"I'm the head of the cabin, it doesn't matter if they're ok with it, they'll do it or else." Her tone was hard. "Now don't make me tell you twice." She added watching as a new group of campers walked into the arena and I sat._

 _"Again." She said from face to face. "And this time get it right."_

 _I closed my eyes, took another breath, and opened them._

 _"The two on the right." I started._

 _"Names." She prompted._

 _"Alice and Nicholas."_

 _"Cabins?" she asked._

 _"Dionysus and Athena." I responded and she nodded her approval. "She's going to break up with him, she like his best friend Thomas from the Hephaestus cabin."_

 _"Is she cheating on him?"_

 _"I think so."_

 _"You think or you know?" she asked pointedly. "I didn't come here to waste my time on things you think are happening. You're supposed to be the best in the cabin at this. Prove it."_

 _"She's cheating on him." I said and an anger flashed through me that did not feel as though it were my own._

 _"What about the boy from the Ares Cabin?" she asked nodding towards a boy directly across the arena form us._

 _"His name is Jason, he's single. Has a crush on Daphne form the Persephone cabin." I answered._

 _"Anything else interesting?" she asked coolly._

 _I paused._

 _"No. Everyone else is either single or in a known relationship."_

 _"Excellent." She said with a satisfied smile then stood._

 _"Can I go hang out with the others now?" It felt like ages since I'd been able to hang out with the siblings around my age. Usually, they were too scared to talk to me because Vanessa was always around. Her methods of manipulation, while effective had its drawbacks, nearly everyone in our cabin who hadn't known her before she was the head councilor was scared of her._

 _"No." she said shortly. "We're going to work on your emotion manipulation."_

 _"But you said-" I started but she silenced me with one look._

 _Apparently her promise meant very little to her._

 _"You said you knew how important this was didn't you?" she asked coldly looking me directly in the eyes._

 _"Fine." I said stubbornly. "What do you want me to do?"_

 _"I want you to set up a couple."_

 _"Alright." I said wondering why this counted as 'working on' I'd set up lots of couples for her. It was easy. Where was the challenge? "Who do you want me to set up?"_

 _"That's up to you." She said standing._

 _"Wait what?" I asked quickly. I'd never set up a couple on my own before._

 _"You have until the campfire to get the boy to ask the girl out."_

 _"Are you kidding me?" I asked her_

 _Was she insane? Set ups like this, of two random people, took time! Sometimes days to plan. And she wanted me to do it in a matter of hours? It wasn't possible._

 _"Nope." She said waving off my concern. "I'll see you tonight Cali. And next time you think you can defy an order you'll have an hour."_

 _I watched her in horror as she exited the arena then looked around in panic. How the hell was I supposed to do this? Vanessa and her friends were the only people I spent meaningful time with outside of family activities. How the hell was I supposed to know who to set up I didn't really know anyone outside my own cabin._

 _I looked down into the arena in panic, trying desperately to find a familiar face. That was when I realized something. I knew all of them._

 _Not personally but over the last few months Vanessa had me memorize nearly everyone in this place as well as their cabins and their friends. A movement caught my eye and I saw Ted, one of the Hermes boys laughing and goofing off with his spear while some of the Athena kids were going over battle tactics and strategy for everyone to learn. His siblings were laughing with him, while most of the Athena kids looked irritated. All but one. A girl whose name was Katie and I remembered was good friends with a girl in the Hermes cabin around Ted's age. She was watching him looking conflicted, like she wanted to laugh but didn't dare do it in front of her family._

 _I smiled._

 _"That will work."_

 _…._

 _"I did it." I said five hours later, walking up to Vanessa and her friends and gesturing towards Ted and Katie who were sitting next to each other on the other side of the fire._

 _They were the cool kids in camp, and rarely paid attention to anyone but each other, but they always made time for me. Vanessa was the head of their little pack, and I was her favorite project._

 _They stopped talking and she looked at me with interest._

 _"Who?" she asked and while her friends looked confused, but she didn't elaborate._

 _I nodded to Ted who'd put his arm around Katie and she blushed but smiled._

 _"Hermes and Athena huh?" she asked looking intrigued. "An unusual combination."_

 _"I did what you wanted." I said for the first time resentment filling me when I looked at her. "Now can I go hang out with friends?"_

 _"But these are your friends." She said smiling at me and the others nodded._

 _"But-" I started, some of these kids were almost ten years older than me and never spoke to me if Vanessa wasn't around. She cut me off however._

 _"You should be grateful Cali. You get to spend time with the most popular people in camp. Do you know how many people would kill to be in your position?"_

 _'But I don't want to be here.' I thought bitterly._

 _{You have to get used to this} Vanessa said speaking in French. {With power comes sacrifice.}_

 _"It's not fair." I said quietly refusing to resort to French I didn't want to be even more removed from the rest of camp._

 _"Life's not fair Cali. Now do what you're told." She said stiffly and gestured for me to sit next to her._


	40. Chapter 40

Wpov

"You know you can't stay here forever." Someone said as they entered the infirmary.

"I don't care." I said not looking up. The voice was slightly familiar, but not enough to make me think I knew the person well. It was probably some random camper who knew Cali and wanted to make sure she was ok. Heather had already visited a few times.

"You must really like this girl." The voice said. "It used to be that there was nothing that would ignore your father for."

I turned in disbelief to see a tall man with dark hair, and my exact same eyes.

"Dad?" I asked in astonishment. "What are doing here?"

"Isn't it a father's job to be there for his son?" he asked and I stared at him.

"Funny." I said sarcastically. "You didn't seem too concerned about this before."

I knew I'd only said this because I was angry. My father and I were on good terms now, but the stress and lack of sleep were getting to me.

"What you went through was your own fault." He said quietly. "And nothing you couldn't handle. Plus," he looked at the bed where Cali was still sleeping. "If you had not gone through it, you would have never met young Callista here would you? I think she's good for you."

He continued to stare at her

"She does take after her mother doesn't she?" he asked sounding half amused and half impressed. "A beautiful but truly terrifying woman."

I sat back down and put my head in my hands.

"Dad, what do you want?" I asked tiredly. I'd already been visited by one god today. I didn't need the pressure of trying to be the perfect son for my dad.

I was surprised to feel his hand on my shoulder.

"I don't want anything." He said and I heard a chair being pulled up. "I came to wait."

I looked up to see he'd also taken a seat next to Cali's bed.

"Why?"

"Because this girl is not only Aphrodite's precious little pawn." He said and I felt a flash of irritation go through me. "But she's also the object of the affections of my favorite son." He said without looking at me. "I'd quite like to met her. So," he gave me a significant look and his eyes landed back on Cali's unconscious form. "We wait."

There was a moment where neither of us spoke as we both looked at Cali. He seemed to be deciding something however because when he next spoke, I almost didn't believe what I heard.

"There is something I could do to help you." He said and I looked at him so quickly I heard my neck crack.

Ignoring the pain, I spoke.

"Could you wake her up?"

"No." he said shaking his head. "Aphrodite was right. Waking up is something she'll have to do herself. But maybe we could give her a little help."

"How?" I asked and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a medallion.

"I might or might not have caught a case of the sticky fingers last time I delivered a message to Morpheus." He said handing me the gold medallion. I noticed on the pendant were greek letters that wrote out a spell. "It would allow you to enter her dream."

"And do what?" I asked hesitantly.

He shrugged.

"Don't ask me." He said. "I didn't make the thing. I just stole it."

I grinned, but it faded quickly.

"What is he going to do when he realizes it's missing?"

"Nothing." He said shrugging. "He owes me a favor."

I took the medallion. Would Cali be angry if I literally walked into her mind? She didn't like when I tried to push her to tell me things, what would she say if I gave her no choice?

I looked at her lifeless form. She'd been unconscious for almost two days now, with no sign of waking up. Curiosity and concern were burning through me. What was she dreaming about?

Before I knew it I'd already put it on.

Immediately, the world began to shiver around me and things turned to gold.

"See you on the other side." My father said with a smile.

Suddenly, I felt a rushing and everything went black. I felt as if I were being forced through a deep tunnel going a hundred miles and hour. A light appeared and it grew bright and brighter. When I reached the end, I found myself standing, on my first night of camp, by the campfire behind the Aphrodite siblings. What was more unusual, I could understand what they were saying.

 _"Cali," Celeste, who looked younger than I'd ever remembered seeing her, said looking at her sister, who also looked extremely young._

 _"Yeah?" Cali asked, also in French._

 _"Did you see the new boy who was claimed earlier?"_

 _"In the Hermes cabin? Will right?"_

 _I looked up to see me glancing at Cali. I couldn't believe how different I looked. My hair was longer, my clothes shredded from monsters, and I looked so angry my expression practically screamed unapproachable. I finally understood why no one had wanted talk to me when I got here. I was surprised Ted even tried._

 _My attention was drawn back to Cali when she nodded and said._

 _"Yeah. Why?"_

 _"Because he keeps staring at you." She said continuing to giggle._

 _Cali looked at me, and I remembered what happened. But what I didn't realize that night was that the moment I'd thought was one sided, had affected her too._

 _I saw her eyes go wide, and she dropped the marsh mellow she'd been roasting. It was obvious that she felt something as well._

 _But at this point I'd looked away._

 _I'd thought that was where the memory ended. It's what I remembered, but it didn't. I looked at Cali who looked confused, and a little hurt. Her expression seemed to say 'what happened?'_

 _"Are you using Amokinesis?" Celeste asked and it took me a few seconds to remember that was the name for their ability to influence affections and emotions._

 _Cali shook her head looking dizzy._

 _I noticed all of her siblings were looking at her now, looking just as concerned as Celeste._

 _"Didn't he feel it too?" A boy I recognized as Malcolm asked, Gods he was so much shorter._

 _"I guess not." Cali said looking away looking more confused as ever._

 _"That doesn't make sense." Another one of her sisters muttered._

 _"What's going on?" one of the brothers asked._

 _But Cali shook her head and stood up._

 _"What's wrong?" Celeste asked frowning._

 _"I-I'm going back to the cabin." Cali said not making eye contact with them._

 _"But Cali-" Malcolm started._

 _"I just want to be alone." She said stiffly and she began moving in the direction of the cabins._

 _Celeste made to follow her but a girl, who must have been the head of the Cabin at the time, snapped._

 _"Stay." In French and Celeste was forced to let Cali go._

 _I followed in disbelief. Cali remembered this? I'd thought after all these years she would have forgotten about it. I was a nobody at this point, no one cared about me, and she was the most loved girl in camp. What had happened between us?_

 _Curious as to what she was going to do now, I followed Cali back to the Aphrodite cabin where after calling to make sure no one was inside, she walked to the common area where they kept a statue of their mother._

 _She walked up to the statue and took a deep breath. I leaned against the door frame and watched twelve-year-old Cali began to speak._

 _"Mom." She said quietly. "I know you don't like talking to us. But I know what I am." She hesitated. "I'm different. I need your help."_

 _There was a moment of silence where I was unsurprised nothing happened._

 _"Please." She said softly. "I don't know what's going on. What am I supposed to do about that boy?"_

 _Cali told me herself that her mother had never spoken to her, not directly anyways, so I expected her to get frustrated when nothing happened. But I was wrong. Something did happen. The statue glowed bright gold, and suddenly there was a flash and a drakon appeared in the middle of the common room._

 _She let out a yell of shock and fell back on the ground._

 _Instinct took over. This might have been Cali in a dream, but clearly something was wrong. There was no way this could have happened in the past, I would have heard about it, and a camper this small would not have survived this attack._

 _She might have been only twelve, but this was still Cali._

 _Before she could even draw her daggers, I sprang into action._

 _"Duck!" I shouted and she turned in surprise to see me._

 _I dove and pushed her out of the way just as a jet of flames hit the floor where she'd been just a minute ago. I cried out in pain, and I realized one of my legs had suffered a burn from the fire._

 _"Who the_ _ **hell**_ _are you?" she shouted over the furious screech of the drakon._

 _"Never mind that. Just get out of here!" I shouted getting to my feet, twisting my ring, and facing the monster with my sword only to find it was again shining in a bright gold light, that was quickly taking it over._

 _"What the-?" I said putting my hand I front of my eyes as it grew to an intolerable level, temporarily blinding me and everything in the room._

 _"What is going on?" Little Cali shouted, but I had no answer for her. I had no idea._

 _The light began to die out, and in the monsters place were two people, two girls. But… it couldn't be two… That wouldn't make any sense._

 _Both girls were Cali, but they were dressed very differently. The one on the left, was in camp gear with her long hair done in pretty braids, perfect make up, and a stunning smile. One that reminded me of Amorette almost. The one the right, was a much more familiar figure. A Cali with a dark oversized jacket, ripped jeans, her hood pulled up, and the contemptuous look she always used to wear around me._

 _"What the hell." I heard little Cali say behind me, and I looked back to see her eyes were wide and she was staring at the two future versions of her self in disbelief. "Is-is that me…?"_

 _"Cali." I started intending to tell her to run, but all three girls answered._

 _"What?"_

 _"This is freaky…" Young Cali said her eyes wide as camp Cali smiled and school Cali rolled her eyes. She took a step back. "What's going on?"_

 _She looked to me for answer, but I had none. I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I raised my sword, unsure if I wanted to attack or not. Something was obviously wrong, but I couldn't attack Cali. Could I?_

 _"Put that down." School Cali said rolling her eyes and pulling out one of her daggers while the camp Cali pulled out the other and finished with. "You wouldn't want someone to get hurt would you?"_

 _"Which one is the real one?" I said looking between the two sixteen year old girls, young Cali looked as if she were about to faint._

 _"I am of course." Camp Cali said with a dazzling smile while at the same time, old Cali rolled her eyes again and said. "God you're such an idiot golden boy."_

 _That didn't help me at all._

 _"What do you want?" I asked as they stepped closer, camp Cali was still smiling, but it was less beautiful and more sinister. School Cali looked at me suspiciously._

 _"Surely even you have figured that out by now." She said raising an eyebrow_

 _I didn't answer._

 _"We want her." Camp Cali said nodding towards youngest version of herself._

 _"I'd like to see you try." Young Cali said arming herself and school Cali let out a humorless laugh._

 _"Real cute kid." She said sarcastically. "Don't make us kill you."_

 _"You're not getting near her." I said stepping in front of younger Cali._

 _Without warning, both older versions of Cali attacked._

 _Let me just clarify something right now, anyone who thought the children of Aphrodite couldn't fight had obviously never met Cali Parker._

 _There was an ear splitting 'CLANG' as my sword met camp Cali's blade and school Cali darted for her twelve year old counterpart._

 _"What the HADES is going on!" young Cali shouted attempting to keep herself at bay. I looked back at her and camp Cali used this as distraction to kick me in the chest and send me flying into the wall._

 _My head connected with a sharp pain and I struggled to stay on my feet._

 _"Whoever you are…" young Cali said uneasily backing away from her older selves as they closed in her. "Could you stop getting your ass kicked and give me some help?"_

 _I shook my head and ran after the girls._

 _We continued to fight, myself and younger Cali against her older counter parts. It was without a doubt the strangest thing I'd ever done and while the older girls were holding nothing back, I couldn't help but hesitate._

 _"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" young Cali shouted furiously when I'd found an opening in school Cali's defenses but refused to exploit it. She ducked camp Cali's lunge, caught her arm and twisted it so she forced her against the wall._

 _"I can't hurt you!" I said in frustration. "But I can't let them hurt you either!"_

 _"What are you babbling about you idiot!" Twelve-year-old Cali shouted. "Neither of them are me!"_

 _She twisted camp Cali's arm harder so she dropped her dagger and struck her with a fatal blow. Camp Cali screamed and erupted into yellow dust._

 _Dust… They were monsters?_

 _I looked back to school Cali who was laughing. She gave me cruel smile and came at me again, but this time I didn't hesitate. This wasn't Cali. I wasn't sure of much right now, but of that I was certain._

 _I threw myself against her and pinned her to the wall my blade at her throat._

 _Just as I was about to end it, her eyes went wide. They were pale blue, almost gray in fear._

 _"Will?" she asked softly so only I could hear. "You wouldn't hurt me, would you?"_

 _Her eyes met mine and I hesitated._

 _I felt my blade lower slightly, but realized my mistake almost at once. I felt the dagger press into my stomach and Cali's eyes flashed green, she was about to strike…_

 _'WHAM!'_

 _School Cali's eyes went wide as she looked down to see the dagger young Cali had thrown protruding from her chest. She didn't have time to say anything, but her eyes met mine with fear, before she exploded into dust and I was holding nothing but air._

 _"You know you really suck." Young Cali said glaring up at me. Her temple was bruised and a cut on her cheek was bleeding onto the collar of her shirt. "Do you always freeze like that when a girl looks at you?"_

 _"Just one." I muttered feeling embarrassed._

 _"Who are you anyways?" she asked flatly. "I haven't seen you around camp."_

 _"That's not important." I said but she narrowed her eyes trying to get a better look at me. "All that matters is you're safe."_

 _"You look like that new boy." She said backing away from me suddenly looking extremely unsettled. "Are," she hesitated. "Are you Will?"_

 _"No." I said quickly but I knew she knew it was a lie._

 _"You are." She said her eyes wide. "You're him, when he's older. Just like that was me when I was older."_

 _I tried to protest but it was no use._

 _"Dude…" she said looking extremely unsettled now. "What's going on?"_

 _I decided to go with the truth._

 _"You're dreaming." I said calmly, trying to gauge her reaction._

 _"What?" she asked blankly._

 _"You're dreaming." I repeated. "And I came here to try and wake you up."_

 _"Are you insane?" she asked looking at me angrily._

 _"If you'd let me explain."_

 _"Just stay away from me." She said pushing passed me._

 _"Cali wait." I said catching her hand but she tried to pull away from me. "You need to wake up."_

 _"Get off me!"_

 _"Just try."_

 _"Trust me dude, you don't want to touch me when I'm angry." She said bitterly._

 _"Look just-"_

 _"No! Get away from me!" she said tearing her hand from mine but over stepping and falling backward._

 _She let out a cry of shock and I lunged forward but the body I caught was not the twelve year old version of Cali. She was taller, her hair was longer. She was in camp gear now. But unlike the Cali I'd seen earlier, she wasn't wearing make up. She was herself._

 _Her eyes fluttered for a second, then opened._

"W-Will?" she asked sounding confused and I realized we were no longer outside Aphrodite's Cabin. We were in the infirmary, with my father, and I standing next to her bed holding her in my arms _._

"Welcome back son." My father said with approval and Cali looked over, but winced and I set her down on the bed.

"What happened?" she asked looking confused.


	41. Chapter 41

Cpov

The first thing I was aware of was being held. I opened my eyes and saw Will above me looking down at me alarmed.

"Welcome back son." A proud voice said but when I tried to look for the person, a great pain erupted through my body and I winced. Everything hurt. Will set me down carefully and I glanced around to see I was in the infirmary. Random images and emotions flashed through my head, which only increased my confusion.

"What happened?" I asked looking at Will.

"You passed out." He said refusing to look away from me. "How are you feeling?"

I wanted to say 'fine' but I couldn't manage it. Every muscle was sore, and my nerves felt as if I'd recently been set on fire. The last time I'd felt like this was…

I sat up quickly, ignoring my muscles that screamed in protest as memories flooded into my already saturated mind.

"Cali, be careful." Will said quickly.

"You know." I said looking up at him.

"Know what?" he asked still looking concerned.

"You know what I'm talking about." I said. "About me. You know."

He hesitated, but when his eyes met mine he nodded.

"Yeah." He said eventually and I blushed as more memories from that night came back to me.

"Did you mean what you said?"

Will hesitated but then someone cleared their throat, and we both looked over to the opposite side of the room where a tall handsome man with dark hair and brooding gray eyes stood looking at the two of us with interest.

"Perhaps you'd like to continue that conversation when I am not here."

"Who are you?" I asked, but I had a feeling I knew the answer. The man looked just like Will.

"I'm William's father Callista." He said his eyes glittering mischievously. "And it is really quite a pleasure to finally meet you."

"You know who I am?" I asked in shock and I saw Will throw his father a look.

"My dear girl, EVERYONE knows who you are." Hermes said with a sly smile. "Aphrodite's little prodigies are always so carefully monitored from day one."

"So everyone knew?" I asked darkly.

"Everyone of importance yes."

"So that's why there were so many monsters attacking me when I was little." I said angrily. "You were trying to kill me."

"For what it's worth." He said frowning. "I never tried. But yes, several of the Gods did send a monster or two your way before you might have been strictly ready for it. But by now it's sort of a tradition to see how tough each your mother's little pawns have become. You're quite the piece of work by the way." He added with a grin. "You're one of the few that survived."

"Dad." Will snapped.

"If she can't handle the truth about her situation who can?" he countered.

"You don't have to say it like that though." He said angrily.

"It's fine." I said trying to push myself out of bed but Will forced me to stay.

"See." His father said with an approving smile. "There's no need to sugar coat things is there Cali?" He turned to Will. "Your girlfriend's tough. It's what I like about her."

I could feel myself go crimson, but for the first time ever, I thought I saw Will blush.

"Well." He said checking his watch. "I must be off. I'm a busy man with lots of messages to deliver and such. I imagine you two have a lot to talk about." He smiled that sly smile again. "Truly Cali. It's been a pleasure. Perhaps we shall meet again."

The room grew hotter as I felt the air molecules vibrate, and Will and I looked away from his father. There was a bright silver flash, a zapping sound, and he was gone.

I opened my eyes and they found their way to Will who seemed to be determinedly looking at anything but me.

"Yeah. So that was my Dad." He said scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.

"He seems nice."

"Yeah, he's alright." He chanced a glance at me. "Look about what he said. Cali, I don't expect you to be my girlfriend or anything I know that you-"

"But what if I wanted to be." I said quietly.

"What?" he asked his hand falling as he looked at me in surprise.

I felt myself blush again.

"It's just." I said and I found suddenly I was the one unable too meet his gaze. I stared at my blankets instead. "I've never wanted to date anyone before, so I didn't know how it would feel. But I always thought it looked kind of stupid you know? People acting like idiots and that sort of thing. But with you. I dunno," I said shrugging and looked back up at him. "With you it doesn't seem like it would be that bad. Maybe, it would be kind of nice."

His expression was unreadable.

"Of course I get it if you don't want to." I said quickly looking down again my cheeks going even redder if that were possible. "I just thought, since, you know, you said what you said you might consider-"

But the next thing I knew, his lips were on mine.

Wpov

Being the son of one of the twelve Olympian Gods got you a little recognition around camp, being one of the most accomplished heroes gave you a fair amount. Being Cali Parker's boyfriend however, that made you a legend.

Everywhere Cali and I went together people stared and whispered. Some guys tried to give me high fives as I passed, while others looked extremely jealous, and suddenly, every girl seemed to know exactly who I was and was my biggest fan.

"Is this what it feels like to be you all the time?" I asked Cali as several people started whispering as we walked towards the beach together.

"Welcome to my world." She said moodily.

"I like your world." I said grinning and she raised an eyebrow. "It's has you in it."

She blushed and looked away, but I could see her smile and she accepted my hand as I laced my fingers with hers.

It was our last day before we went home and since she'd woken up, nothing had gone wrong. We'd won our game of capture the flag, no campers or magical objects had gone missing, all new campers were arriving happy and healthy, my mother had written to tell me I'd gotten early acceptance into Prestion with a full scholarship, but best and probably most miraculous of all, I'd managed to not do anything stupid to mess things up with Cali.

The closest thing to an incident camp had had was when Nona and her siblings had managed to blow a hole open in the wall of Bunker 9 working on their new top secret project, but the injuries were minimal and no one had died, so it could have been a lot worse.

I was so content, I was almost on edge. I'd never gone this long without some sort of incident with Cali. I was almost waiting for Tyler to come back, or a monster invasion, or Aphrodite to mess things up.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"What? Oh-" I said realizing I must have had a funny look on my face. "Nothing, I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Just that things have been going really well lately."

"I know what you mean." She said frowning. "It's almost like it's been too easy. No monsters, or curses, or strange prophecies."

"Exactly."

"Makes you think whatever's going to happen next is going to be big."

"So you're worried too then?"

"I'm a demigod." She said flatly. "And I'm an instrument of Aphrodite's wrath. I'm always worried."

"Well you've got a fair point there." I said and she allowed herself a slightly bitter smile.

When we reached the beach, we saw that we weren't the only ones with this idea. Many couples were at the beach to enjoy their last few hours together before going to their separate homes. Immediately I was grateful that Cali lived so close. I didn't know what I'd do if we were like Nona and her boyfriend James who lived five states away from camp where she stayed full time.

We walked along the shore until we found a secluded spot in the shade of an over hanging tree and watched the tide roll in. That was the nice thing about camp, it was always summer here. It could be snowing across the barrier but you'd never know it looking up at the perfectly blue sky and sunlight reflecting off the water.

"You realize Max is going to be unbearable right?" she asked. We were laying propped up against the tree and watched the waves swell onto the beach. Her head was resting against my chest and I had one arm around her while my free hand had been playing with her hair.

"For you maybe." I said grinning and she looked up at me. "He's under the impression I've wanted to date you for years."

She was wearing make up today, she had been ever since we started dating but I didn't mind it now. I already had her, why did I need to be nervous? Though, sometimes if she caught me off guard, I did feel as if my brain needed to reboot.

"And was he right?" She asked raising an eyebrow.

"I told you Parker." I said my smile growing and tugging her hair. "You were too much of a pain in my ass to date."

"You're never going to let me live that down are you?" she asked with a sigh and turning back to the water.

"What? You hating me?" I asked and she nodded. "No. I'm not."

"I didn't think so." She muttered darkly then sat up and looked at me. "What if I asked nicely?"

"You know charmspeak doesn't work on me." I said a little guilty for remembering the reason why, but I pushed it from my mind.

"I never said I was going to use charmspeak." She said frowning. "I meant actually being nice."

"You know you could just say you're sorry." I said, also sitting up.

"For what?" she asked suspiciously.

"For making me run after you for so long."

"That was your choice." She said frowning.

"Oh c'mon on, you can't be serious." I said in disbelief.

"Alright," She said but she didn't look at me. "I'm sorry."

"You mean it?" I asked amused.

"Yes."

"What's wrong?" I asked frowning. She looked upset.

"Nothing." She said automatically.

"I know you're lying." I said and she hugged her knees to her chest.

"I guess I just feel bad." She said guiltily. "All the stupid things I've done… I was so horrible to you."

"Cali," I started, reaching towards her but she pushed my arm away. I didn't give up. I pulled her onto my lap and wrapped my arms around her from behind. "Don't worry about it. All that stuff, it doesn't matter anymore."

"Yeah but still-" she began fretfully.

"You're here now." I said pulling her closer and resting my chin on her shoulder. "That's all I care about."

"You're really not mad?" she asked and I could hear the doubt in her voice. I wondered if this had been bothering her for a while.

"Does it seem like I'm mad?" I asked kissing her cheek and I felt her smile. I didn't expect Cali to be the affectionate type, but I was surprised to find that when she wanted to, Cali could be very sweet.

Twice this week, she'd surprised me after my morning run with my favorite sports drinks and protein bars, and when I'd gone to the armory on Wednesday after training because it was my turn to organize the weapons, I'd found it was already done. Cali had done it during her free time so we could spend the time walking around the lake.

Not only was she acting like a normal girlfriend, she was kind of the perfect one. So much so that even some of my brothers, who were supportive of the relationship, were a little jealous.

"You ready for school tomorrow?" I asked after a few minutes of silence. I'd realized I'd sort of dropped the ball when it came to making sure she'd done her assignments. What with everything going on at camp, I'd sort of forgotten about the mortal world for a while.

"Do you mean homework, or the people?" she asked.

"Both."

"I finished all my work a week ago." She said. "As for the people, well, I don't think I'm every going to be ready."

"It won't be that bad."

"Says you." She said darkly. "I'm sure everyone there can't wait to see you. To them all I do is cause you trouble."

"You're not the same person you were before." I reminded her.

"You know that but they don't." She muttered.

"Well you'll just have to show them the same person you show me."

She didn't say anything but leaned back against me.

I would have been happy to stay at the beach all afternoon, but eventually we heard someone say our names.

We both looked up to see Nona and Ted walking towards us, Nona's cheek was still bandaged from being injured in the Bunker 9 explosion.

"Told you they'd be here." She said smugly while Ted scowled. "We've been looking for you two."

"What's up?" I asked. I'd expected them to be with James and Katie since it was our last day at camp. Had something happened?

"Don't worry." Nona said accurately reading my expression. "Nothing weird is going on I just ran into Teddy on the way here."

"Don't call me that." He said darkly his ears going red. Ted hated that nickname.

"Aw why not Teddy?" she asked in a babying tone while jutting out her lower lip. "Katie does."

"Shut up." he muttered and she snickered.

"Did you need something?" I asked her and they looked at us.

"Yeah. Your parents are here to pick you guys up." Ted said.

I glanced at my watch. Was it really five already? I had a tendency to fall out of time when I was alone with Cali.

"You packed?" I asked and she nodded.

"Then let's get going." I said standing and helping her up.

"You guys coming back for spring break?" Nona asked hopefully hugging me then moving on to Cali.

"That's the plan." I said shaking hands with Ted, who then also gave Cali a hug. Though we hadn't been dating very long, they got along well with her.

"Excellent." Nona said with a grin and then looked at Cali her expression suddenly devious. "Let me know if he starts to annoy you." She said jerking her thumb at me and giving her a wink. "I'll be sure to send you some presents to help keep him in line."

"Shut up Nona." Ted and I said in unison and both girls laughed.

They walked with us back to the cabins then to the boundary after Cali and I had grabbed our things. They watched us loading our things in to my mother's car from the top of Half Blood Hill and waved when I looked back up. I waved back.

"Let's move kids, we're burning daylight." Dave said. "We've got a long drive back."

Neither he nor my mother had said anything about Cali's changed appearance or the fact that when we'd first made it to the car her hand was in mine, but when we climbed into the back seat, I saw my mom glance at her in the rear view mirror, and I could have sworn I saw her smile.


	42. Chapter 42

Wpov

I could tell Cali was nervous to go back to school, but I didn't realize how bad it was until she froze as we reached the steps.

"I don't feel good." She muttered pulling her jacket closer around her and shivering in the cold January air.

"You're not skipping." I said flatly.

"I think I'm going to be sick."

"There are trash cans inside."

"Will I'm serious." She said sounding nauseated.

"So am I." I said looking at her. "The longer you put this off, the worse it's going to be when you eventually do it."

She gave me a searching look, almost as if she were deciding whether or not to trust me.

I took her hand.

"Don't worry." I said assured her. "I'll be right here."

She looked a little relieved at this and managed a slight grin. I knew why she was nervous. Cali didn't look like she usually did when she came to school and people were bound to notice. She was wearing clothes that fit for once and had pinned her hair away from her face. She was even wearing make up.

Part of me wondered if this change in style reflected her newfound attitude about love, but I knew better than to bring it up.

She did seem happier though. She no longer avoided reflective surfaces like the plague which I thought was good for her. It seemed as if she was starting to feel comfortable in her own skin again.

"Shall we?" I asked.

She nodded

"Let's do it then." I continued squeezing her hand and together we walked up the steps.

People's reactions were immediate and predictable. Mouths fell open, whispers broke out and people stared as we walked down the hallway together.

"People are looking at me." She muttered uncomfortably.

"Just ignore them." I said looking straight down the hall.

"Easier said then done." She said throwing a couple sophomores a scowl.

"Just pretend we're at camp."

"CALI?!"

The next thing I knew, Cali's hand was ripped from mine as a tall skinny figure tackled my girlfriend in a hug.

"Jesus Max." Cali choked as he continued to almost strangle her. "What the hell?"

"Does this mean what I think it means?" Max asked excitedly while crushing his sister. "Are you and Will finally going out?"

"Yep." I said while Cali coughed and asked.

"Finally?"

"When did this happen? Why didn't you tell me? How long have you two been together?"

"A little over a week." I said and Max looked back at me. "And I think you're killing her."

"Oh." He said letting go of Cali who was now gasping for air. "Sorry." But his grin was as huge, as if Christmas had come again.

"Max, why do you care so much?" Cali asked.

"Because this is awesome."

"It's not that big of a deal." She continued.

"Are you kidding me?!" he almost shouted. "It's a huge deal. Everyone's going to be talking about this."

"They are?" she asked hesitantly. He clearly wasn't helping.

"Of course!" he continued oblivious to her queasy expression. "Everyone's going to want to know how it all happened."

"They are?"

"Yeah. How did it happen anyways?" he asked eagerly.

"Max." I said catching his attention and breaking the stream of interrogation that had been directed at Cali.

"Yeah?"

"I'll talk to you later at practice." I said pointedly and he seemed to pick up on the hint.

"Oh, alright." He said looking a little momentarily disappointed, but the grin quickly returned. "Well I'll see you later Cal."

And still grinning, he walked off.

"Will, I don't want people talking to me." She said looking panic stricken.

"Cali, it's going to be fine." I assured her.

"I don't want anymore attention."

I was spared the need to answer when she spotted something down the hall and her expression went blank.

I looked up to see what she was staring at, and felt a stab of fury go through me. Tyler had just entered the school, and was looking right at Cali.

I put my arm around her.

"Let's go." I said stiffly.

She didn't say anything but nodded and let me drag her towards her first class of the day. I felt a grim sense of satisfaction when I noticed that she didn't look back.

Cpov

The first day back was rough, but it was going better than I'd thought it was would. I'd expected the muttering and the stares, but it didn't bother me as much as I'd originally thought. I guess I was so used to hearing the horrible things they used to say about me, rumors about something that was good just didn't faze me as much. So what if they talked about my relationship with Will? If it didn't bother him, why should I let it bother me?

It was a little awkward in classes though.

In camp I'd spent most of my time with either my siblings or with Will and his friends. I'd forgotten that in the mortal world, I really didn't have any friends unless you counted Sadie who went to a different school. While he managed to walk me to all my classes, the fact was Will was a senior and Max was only a freshman. When I was in class I was alone, and after two weeks of constantly being surrounded by people in camp, I'd forgotten how much it sucked.

"Alright class." My French teacher Ms. Roche said as she closed her power point and turned on the lights. "Time to divide into pairs and work on today's speech exercise."

She was a tall, slender, beautiful woman with long dark brown hair and light blue eyes. Half of the boys in the class only took it because they thought she was hot which annoyed her, but she liked me. Because I was as fluent as a native speaker, I was the only one who understood the jokes she made in French. I wasn't sure she completely bought the story I'd given her about learning it from a summer my father had spent photographing models in Paris, but she didn't question me too much about it. Often times she'd speak to me in French even outside of class.

As usual, most people partnered with their friends, but I noticed several boys were looking at me with interest. This was the only class I was naturally any good at, and now that I was dating Will, I could tell they were far less afraid to approach me than they would have been before. Well, as long as he wasn't here.

I quickly looked away.

My eyes landed on a girl in the back corner of the class who was texting and clearly not paying attention to anything that was going on around her. She was pretty, with long black hair and light green eyes, and while I'd seen her around school before, I wasn't exactly sure who she was. But she was the only person in this class who didn't seem to be talking about me, so I decided to take drastic measures before I was assigned a partner.

I grabbed my book bag and crossed the room to the open seat next to hers.

"Can I work with you?" I asked and she looked up at me in shock.

"Uh what?" she asked as if she wasn't sure she'd heard me correctly.

"The speech exercise." I said gesturing towards the phrases Ms. Roche was now writing on the board. "Do you want to work together?"

She hesitated.

"Your name's Cali right?" she asked and I could tell she was debating whether she really wanted a partner who was well known in school for never doing work.

"Yeah." I said then continued. "Look I don't want to bother you. I just really don't want to get stuck with them." I said nodding back at the group of boys.

She glanced at the group of boys and one of them winked at us.

"Yeah I can see why." She said scowling at them before looking up at me. "Sure, I'll work with you."

"Thank you." I said in relief and slid into the chair next to hers.

I was determined to keep my promise and wanted to get started on our work right away, but it was she who took us off topic.

"Did you really spend a summer in France?" she asked me curiously. "Because Max said he's never been, and doesn't remember you ever going, and he said you've been speaking French for as long as he can remember. He doesn't know where you learned it."

"You know my brother?" I asked her surprised.

"He's dating my little sister, Amber." She explained. "He's around my house a lot."

"There's a lot he doesn't know about me." I said avoiding the question.

"Yeah, seems like no one knows that much about you." She muttered, then caught my expression. "Sorry."

"It's fine." I said shaking my head. "It's kind of true."

There was a pause between us but an awkward moment was avoided when Ms. Roche called the class to attention to explain the verbal activity.

We finished the exercise before most of the other students. In that time we ended up talking about random things.

I found I really did like Madison. She was very smart, extremely nice, and seemed to be one of the very few girls outside of camp who didn't hate me on sight. All of that, and the fact that I was about ninety-three percent sure she wasn't a monster, made me sort of glad I'd met her today.

When class ended and we'd been assigned our quarter project, she'd agreed to work with me again.

"I'll see you later Cali." She said with a smile and shouldering her backpack as the bell rang and people scrambled for the classroom door.

"Yeah." I said grabbing my books and shoving them into my bag.

"Au revior, Cali." Ms. Roche said with a smile.

"Je vais vous voir la classe suivante." I said, telling her I would see her next class.

"Make sure to bring your homework." She said attempting, but failing, to give me a stern expression because she smiled when she added. "Even if, unlike the rest of the class, you can do it five minutes before it's due."

I smiled and walked out of the class to see Will waiting outside. Several heads turned to stare at us passed but I ignored them.

"How are you getting to my classes so fast?" I asked him.

"Magic." He said with a playful smile that made my heart skip a beat. "How was French?"

"Good." I said as his fingers interlocked with mine.

"You look happy about something." He pressed.

"I think I made a friend."

I knew that at sixteen it was stupid, by my age people were supposed to be good at basic human interaction, but I couldn't help but feel a little excited. This was the first time in a long time that I'd had a regular conversation with a girl who wasn't related me and hadn't hated me at some point.

"You are way too excited about this." He said grinning. "You sound like a five year old."

"Hey this is a big step for me." I said annoyed.

"Ok Cal." He said still sounding amused.

"You're being mean."

"Alright I'm sorry." He said putting an around my shoulders and kissing the top of my head. "I'm glad you've managed to do what most kids learn at the age of three."

"Shut up." I muttered and he laughed.

I wanted to be irritated with him, but now that I wasn't putting so much energy into disliking him, I could see why half the girls at school and at camp had a crush on him. There was something about him that no matter what he did, you couldn't get mad. He had a certain charisma that he'd never used around me before, and I had to admit it worked.

When he gave me his confident, almost cocky smile, I couldn't think straight. Anytime he touched me, I found it hard to breathe. He didn't even have to be looking at me for me to feel drawn to him, but when he did, it felt like we were the only two people in the room.

"So who is this friend?" he asked and I realized that I'd been staring up at him like an idiot.

"Her name is Madison. I think she's in my year."

"The girl from the Drama club?"

"We have a drama club?" I asked in shock.

"Yeah." He said giving me a strange look. "It's actually pretty good. We've won a few awards for some of their performances."

"I didn't now that." I said frowning.

"Exactly how much school have you missed?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

I decided to change the subject.

"Well, I don't know if this girl is in the club or not."

"Dark hair? Pretty face?" he asked. "Her sister is dating Max."

"That's her."

"Yeah, she's huge into theater. She's been in every school play since I've been here."

"How do you know that?" I asked him curiously.

"Because I actually come to school." he said amused ruffling my hair and I pushed his hand away annoyed. "They announce the cast lists every time the director sets it. She's always called."

"She must be a pretty good actress to be picked all the time." I said and he shrugged.

"Couldn't tell you. I've never been to a play."

We made it to my history class and the warning bell rang.

"Do you have practice tonight?" I asked looking up at him.

"Yeah, we're in training for regionals now. Practice every day, even if we're not in season. You coming to watch?"

"I can't." I said. "Sadie's dragging me to the mall. She wants me to help her find a dress for some military school formal she got asked to over break."

"You don't sound to excited." He said with a grin.

"Would you be?" I asked raising an eyebrow

"Well I'm glad you two are getting along at any rate, I'll see you tonight then." He said then after a quick kiss, he smiled and started making his way to physics, his last class of the day.

I smiled, and tried to ignore the looks a couple of senior girls that I recognized to be on Will's team were giving me distrustful looks as I walked into my class. I ignored them, they could glare all they want. It wasn't going to change the fact that right now I was happier than I'd been for a long time.


	43. Chapter 43

Wpov

"Here he is everyone!" Derek, another senior on the team who'd made it to regionals, announced putting his hand on my shoulder in approval as I walked into the gym for practice. "Your captain, and king among men, Will Silverman. Can I get some applause everybody?" he asked and several of the guys on the team started to cheer while many of the girls looked annoyed and exchanged dark looks.

"What's going on?" I asked confused as Max rolled his eyes irritably and started talking to Amber. She hadn't qualified for regionals herself, but many of the runners who wanted to stay in shape for next season continued to practice with those of us who had.

"They're talking about Cali." Chris explained looking amused.

"You've officially snagged the hottest girl in school dude." Derek said with a smirk and looking around at the team. "And all of those who doubted you can suck it. So," he said eagerly and turning back to me. "How did you do it?"

"Is she as crazy as everyone says?" A junior named Peter asked.

"How far have you gotten?" Aiden, another senior, said completely oblivious to the glare his girlfriend was giving him.

"I'm not talking about this with all of you." I said irritated.

"But-" several of them started but Chris cut them off.

"Leave him alone guys, this is his girlfriend you're talking about. Have a little respect." He said in a tone of finality.

"Apparently, he wants to date a psychopath." A junior named Jasmine muttered in a stage whisper to her friends who giggled.

I wanted to say something but I felt Chris grab my shoulder and he shook his head.

"Ignore it." He said quietly. "She's had a crush on you forever, you know she's just jealous."

"That doesn't make it ok." I muttered darkly.

"Yeah, but if Max can ignore it so can you."

I glanced at Max who was still talking to his girlfriend looking perfectly at ease. I didn't know how he was doing it. Sure I'd been annoyed when people talked about Cali before, but now that she was my girlfriend, it was infuriating. I could only imagine what it must have been like for him seeing as Cali was his sister. He'd been putting up with it for years.

That being said, the gossip around Cali was not all together negative anymore. Abandoning the ripped and baggy clothes, as well as her attempt to stop hiding from everyone had woken the school to how much she had changed, and people were finally starting to notice.

"Speak of the devil." Chris muttered and I saw Max had left Amber and was walking our way.

"Seems you're as popular as ever." Max said grinning.

"It's not by choice I assure you." I said and Chris snorted.

"Sounds like you and your girlfriend have the same problem." He muttered then walking towards the water table to give Max and I some privacy.

"So what happened?" he asked eagerly.

"What do you mean?" I asked playing for time.

"You know what I mean." He said rolling his eyes. "You and Cali. When did that become a thing?"

"A little less than a week ago." I said thinking back. With everything that had happened at camp, it had felt longer.

"And?" he asked expectantly.

"And what?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"What changed her mind?" he asked. "Don't get me wrong I'm not complaining," he added quickly. "But you know my sister. She'd never date anyone if she could avoid it."

I frowned. The truth was, I wasn't exactly sure what had changed Cali's mind, and I was probably never going to bring it up. I'd been lucky enough to get what was probably the most guarded girl in the planet to let down a few of her walls. I wasn't going to start questioning it now.

"I honestly couldn't tell you." I said shaking my head. "If you're looking for answers you'll have to ask her."

"Yeah that's not going to happen." He said his eyes going wide and I grinned.

"I wouldn't recommend it no."

"So, does this mean she's really done with that asshole Tyler?" he asked and I felt a flash of anger go through me at his name, but I kept it in check.

"I think so. But he's probably too afraid to go near her anyways." I said darkly.

"Yeah I heard a rumor that you two go into a fight." He said frowning. "But I didn't know if I believed it or not. It was around the time he stopped coming to school again but I'd thought if you did something too bad she'd be mad at you. And well, look what happened."

"It wasn't much of a fight." I said and when he looked at me questioningly I clarified. "It was pretty one sided."

He grinned.

"I always forget cuz you were so nice to me," he started with a grin. "But you can be kind of scary when you want to be. You kicked his ass didn't you?"

"He shouldn't have messed with my girlfriend." I said and he laughed.

"Remind me never to piss you off."

"You don't have anything to worry about." I said amused. "If anything happened to you, Cali would kick my ass."

"Could she?" he asked skeptically. "I mean I know my sister's a bad ass but I doubt she could beat you up."

"Oh I have no doubt about it." I said shaking my head remembering how quick she'd been when we'd sparred at camp and how lethal she'd fought against monsters. "If she really wanted to."

"Really?" he asked in shock.

"In more ways than one."

"You know I've always wanted to know where she learned to fight like that." He mused.

"Camp." I said automatically without thinking.

He raised an eyebrow.

"What exactly do they teach you at that place?"

"Oh. Well, you can sign up for self defense lessons." I said inventing on the spot.

"She seems to know a little bit more than self defense." He said frowning. "I once saw her pull a knife on a guy who tried to mug us one day when we were walking home from school in middle school. She seemed to know what she was doing with it."

"She does."

"I didn't even know she had a weapon." He said suddenly lost in memory.

'She's got two,' I thought tersely.

"It just seemed like she pulled it out of thin air." He continued.

I decided to change the subject. The last thing I needed was for Cali to be angry at me for talking to her brother about her enchanted weapons, or anything related to the non-mortal world really.

"So are you excited for regionals?" I asked. One of the Juniors who was supposed to be running had broken his ankle over break which meant Max would be taking his place.

"Of course." He said grinning. "I mean I know there's no way I'm going to win, but how many people get to go as a freshman?"

"You shouldn't think like that." I said shrugging. "And this year I think you're the only one. Even I wasn't that good."

"You didn't run track your freshman year." He said rolling his eyes. "Otherwise you'd be three time national champion already. Not just the two time."

I grinned but didn't respond. He was probably right but it would be conceited for me to say so.

"You know I can't see you doing anything other than running around after Cali and running track." He said thoughtfully. "What did you even do before you came to our school anyways?"

I froze as an icy feeling of anxiety spread through me, causing my entire body to tense. I knew most people thought that my life before I moved had been pretty much the same as it was now. I didn't bother to correct them because it was what I wanted them to think, but every time someone, especially Cali, got close to the subject I felt this fear.

What if she found out about the person I'd been? What I used to do?

I knew she must have some idea of it after everything that had happened that night with Tyler, and she'd followed my lead in not mentioning it, but what would happen if the subject were breeched?

Would she care?

"Nothing important." I said shrugging.

"Just being a normal kid?" he asked and once again scenes from my regular nightmare flashed in my mind. Sirens, shouts, and the flash of blue lights after being cornered by the squad car.

"Yeah." I said without making eye contact. "Utterly normal."

Cpov

Over the next few days, Will and I were talked about a lot, but I found it easier and easier to ignore. The first, and probably biggest reason was Will. He didn't seem to care at all what anyone thought, and acted like any normal boyfriend would, even if half the school thought he was crazy for dating me. The second, and more surprising reason was Madison, who, I discovered after sitting next to her for a few classes, I got along with really well.

Will was right, she was in the drama club, and while I'd originally thought her to be a little shy I couldn't have been more mistaken.

Madison was hilarious. She was very nice, and was probably one of the least judgmental people I'd ever met. She didn't care that people gave her weird looks when they saw us talking, she never once judged me for how I used to act in the past, but best of all, unlike the rest of the people in school, she didn't treat me any differently than she would any other person. She would tell me straight up if she thought I was wrong, she didn't give a damn about how I might react. She might have been the one person other than Will and Max who wasn't remotely afraid of me.

"So how did that happen exactly?" she asked as we sat together during lunch and she spotted Will walking to class with his friend Chris outside in the hall. He had a different lunch block than me today. "You dating the most popular boy in school. Don't get me wrong." She added with a grin. "You're a total babe and everything, but you're not exactly the head cheerleader are you? What have you got in common with the golden boy?" she asked. She'd quickly adopted my old nick name for Will.

"More than you think." I said shrugging. I was amazed at how easy it was to talk to her. "He can fight, he also speaks Greek."

"You can speak Greek?" she asked raising an eyebrow. I'd forgotten that most people didn't know that. "What are you guys?"

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning.

"Well, both of your parents split, no one seems to know anything about them other than the fact that Will occasionally sees his Dad, and you guys never talk about them. What are they like secret agents or something?"

"What?" I asked laughing.

Normally it would have annoyed me to talk about my parents, but with Madison it didn't bother me. I guess like Will she'd gotten to know me well enough that it just wasn't a big deal around her.

"You know." She said grinning as well. "Did they teach you how to kick people's asses and speak a million different languages so you could hide in another country if one of their missions went wrong?"

"Well if they were spies they must be doing a pretty shitty job if a high school teenager like you could figure it out." I said and she grinned.

"Well Will seems better than that Tyler guy anyways." She said returning to the original subject.

"You know Tyler?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"Not personally." She said with a shrug. "But everyone knows him kind of the same way they know you. People talk." She smiled then asked. "Is it true Will kicked his ass?"

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" I said scowling.

"Because it's obvious he's way too scared to come near you these days, and everyone knows he and Will hate each other."

"They didn't hate each other." I muttered wondering if on Will's part that was true.

She gave me a skeptical look.

"Well Tyler didn't hate Will, at least not in the beginning. I think he just kind of annoyed him."

"Well I think he misses you."

"Why?" I asked frowning.

"Haven't you noticed he's been at school every day since we got back, and the way he looks at you when he sees you and Will together?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"No." I said honestly. Tyler had been hanging around school more often than usual these days, but I tried my best to ignore him.

"He's jealous." She said with a knowing smirk. "Typical boy. He doesn't know what he's got until it's gone."

It was clear Madison found this amusing, but I couldn't say I did.

"You know we weren't actually dating right?" I asked her. "Nothing happened."

"Maybe not but you're the only girl I've ever seen him follow around."

"He didn't follow me around." I said frowning. If anything it was me who sought out him.

"Cali the only time he showed up to school was when he wanted to talk to you." She said with a note of derision in her voice. "Are you really that oblivious?"

"I guess so." I said with a shrug feeling a bit awkward. "But it doesn't matter now does it? I'm dating Will."

"I don't know about that." She said sounding unconvinced.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" she hesitated. "Don't get me wrong, I like Will. But Tyler doesn't seem like the kind of person to just let things be you know?"

"Yeah I do." I said frowning.

"I don't know him that well but from what I've heard, he doesn't like not getting his way. He seems like the kind of person who'd want to get even."

"With me?" I asked confused.

"With Will." She said shrugging. "You were kind of his best girl until Will made it clear you were off limits. You really expect him to take that lying down?"

Again I felt uncomfortable.

Would Tyler try something?

If I was honest with myself, the answer was probably yes. Tyler would be angry that I chose Will over him, but there was nothing he could do to hurt Will. He was a mortal, and even though Tyler couldn't know it, Will was an incredibly powerful demigod. There was nothing Tyler could do to Will that Will couldn't handle, right?

"I wouldn't worry about it too much though." Madison said sounding unconcerned and I was brought back to the present. "If Will could put up with all the crap you used to pull, I'm sure he can deal with a crazy ex boyfriend."

"Let's hope." I said frowning not even bothering to correct the term.

"What are you doing this weekend?" she asked curiously.

"Homework." I said honestly. Since I'd come back from winter break all I really did with my time was work, or spend time with Max and Will. "Why?"

"Some friends and I are coming in on Saturday to help build the set for the one acts. You want to help?"

"Sure." I said trying not to look too excited. This was the first time she'd invited me to do anything with her outside of school. "When do I have to be here?"

"I think we're going to start around eight if that's not too early."

"I'll be there." I said and she smiled.

"Great."

The bell rang.

"We'll I've got to get going." She said brightly while throwing her bag over her shoulder and standing up. "As much as I'd like it to, my algebra test isn't going to take itself. I'll see you later Cal."

"See you."

I stood as well and she walked towards the opposite door that lead to the math department while I followed the crowd towards the exit, my mind far from school.

Was she right about Tyler?

It bothered me more than I would like to admit.

What if he did find some way to get back at Will? Could he really be that big of a problem?

'Don't be stupid' I thought while shaking my head. 'This is ridiculous.'

Will had been through way worse than what ever Tyler could come up with. He may pretend to be tough but Will was the real thing. Besides, if Will had stuck with me after everything I'd put him through, someone like Tyler was nothing. I was just freaking out over nothing. Unlike Tyler, Will had been there for me always, nothing could take that away.

But just as I'd reassured myself, I felt the strange sensation that I was being watched.

I turned only to see Tyler not five feet away, looking at me exactly the way Madison had described.

I turned away.

'Don't be an idiot.' I thought walking to my next class. 'There's nothing he can do.'


	44. Chapter 44

Wpov

The next few weeks after camp passed for me quickly. Cali was at a B average, I'd gotten through my midterms, I'd accepted a place on Prestion's track team, and Aphrodite hadn't done a thing about it.

I expected her to be angry, here I was making blatant plans to leave Cali alone next fall, but she hadn't said a word.

"How you feeling?" my mother asked as we walked into the stadium. Normally, track meets were held outside, but seeing as it was February and all of the tracks were covered in snow, the State competition had been moved to a local football stadium that had a regulation sized track around the outside of the field.

"Fine." I said and it was true. I didn't get nervous before meets anymore. I wasn't worried about the other runners, I didn't care about the people watching, and I didn't have to worry about what Cali was up to, because she, Max, and Chris had come with us to watch me run.

"I'm sorry Dave couldn't be here." She said apologetically.

"It's fine." I said looking at the track. Dave had some sort of guest lecture he was going to that had been planned for months and he couldn't back out of, but that was the last thing from my mind at the moment. All I wanted to focus on was the race.

"Are you sure honey because you seem kind of quiet."

"He's fine." I heard Cali say from behind us and I turned to see that she and Max had returned from the snack bar with what looked like a lot more than five dollars worth of snacks, which was the amount I knew she had. "He's always like that before a race."

I grinned.

"And you always seem to get more than your money's worth from the concessions."

"I'm a skilled negotiator." She said with a mischievous smile.

"Yes I'm sure that's what it is."

"Whatever it is," Chris said walking back from the bathroom and grabbing a handful of popcorn. "It's fantastic. If I'd known how much free food I'd be getting I'd have told Will to ask you out months ago." He turned to me. "You'll never believe who I saw."

"Who?" Max and I asked in unison.

"That Blakefeild kid. You remember him right Cali?" he asked looking at her. "The boy who's ass you kicked?"

"That could be a lot of people." She said shrugging while taking a sip of soda and Max smirked. "You'll have to be more specific."

"He was at one of our track meets."

"Oh that guy." She said with mild interest. "I look forward to seeing him lose."

"I bet he's not feeling so confident now." Max, who'd obviously heard the story from someone, said with a snicker.

"He's not." Chris said with a wide grin. "When he heard Will was here he got all wide eyed and panicky. And when I told him Cali was here too he almost ran off. I think he might be more scared of your girlfriend than he is of you dude."

Everyone laughed at this, except my mother who'd gone oddly quiet. Her mouth had fallen open slightly and she was staring at something behind me, as if she couldn't quite believe her eyes.

"He's a smart boy then." Said a familiar voice and I turned in disbelief to see a tall man with dark hair, and my exact same eyes. "After all, she does take after her mother."

"Dad?" I asked in amazement and for a moment, everything, even the race was driven from my mind.

"How are you doing Will?" He said putting a hand on my shoulder and beaming at me with pride.

"Fine. What are you doing here?"

My father visited me a lot compared to most of the Gods. He'd been to the National competitions and had visited me on my eighteenth birthday, but never did I imagine that he would show up today.

"I was in the area, thought I'd drop by to wish you luck."

I looked back at Cali. While the others looked a little surprised to see my father here, Cali looked as if she were about to faint. Only now did it just occur to me that apart from my mother, she was the only other person who knew who he really was, but unlike my mother, she wasn't used to seeing a God. Now that she was at her full faculties and she knew he was aware of what she was, I had to imagine she was feeling kind of nervous. Even if he liked her.

"I'll never get used to it." He said continuing to look at Cali. "You really are the spitting image of her, aren't you?"

"Her mother?" Max asked quickly looking excited. "Do you really know her? Is she-"

"We should probably give them some privacy." My mother said cutting him off while giving Chris and him a significant look.

"But-"

"Thank you Karen." My father said pointedly and while they looked reluctant, no doubt they were eager to hear about Cali's mother, Chris, Cali, and Max followed my mother towards the stands to find seats. He watched her as they walked away with what looked like a hint of regret in his eyes, but it cleared when they looked back at me.

"Just look at you." He said with a proud grin. "If fifteen year old Will saw you now, do you think he'd believe what he saw? Popular, a hero, and dating the prettiest girl in your school."

"No." I said frowning. "I wouldn't have. But what are you doing here?"

"I told you. I came by to wish you luck before your run."

"But this isn't an important race."

"Now don't be getting cocky Will." He said with a grin. "All races are important. But if you must know, I came with a gift."

"Really?" I asked in surprise.

My father had given me things before. Mainly things like running shoes or other track equipment for my birthdays, but he'd never given me in enchanted item. But when he pulled a small black card out of his pocket, I knew that's what it must be.

"Though I know there are very few things your girlfriend can't get with her powers of persuasion, being the patron for travelers, I thought this might come in handy." He finished handing the card to me.

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"This will serve as a ticket or pass to any type of transportation you could think of. Planes, trains, busses," as he named each mode of travel, the omnipass turned into a corresponding ticket. "Even cruise liner if you want. No matter how you travel or what the cost, you'll always find a seat open for you no matter where you want to go."

"Why are you giving me this?" I asked in astonishment.

"I have a feeling you'll find it useful."

"Why?" I asked taking the card.

"Call it a father's intuition." He said cryptically. "Just don't tell your pretty little girlfriend I gave it to you." He said sounding amused "Don't want her asking too many questions about you now do we?"

"I guess not." I agreed and he frowned. Great. Now three enchanted items that would be awkward if she asked me to explain. First the ring, then the photo, now this.

"You know she's going to find out eventually."

"What makes you think that?"

"Because she's a smart girl. She'll figure it out." He said. "And I'm sure if she's going to know the truth, she'd rather hear it form you."

"She's not going to find out."

"How exactly do you expect to hide it forever? You're working for her mother."

"I know." I said bitterly. "You don't have to remind me."

"I just don't want you to mess this up." he said.

"Why do you care?" I asked him suspiciously.

"I can't care about my son?" he asked and I looked at him. "Look. I think Cali is good for you. She gives you focus, which is something you need in your life. I just don't want to see you lose it over something that could be avoided."

"How am I supposed to tell her?" I asked almost desperately. "She'd kill me."

"That I'm afraid you're going to have to figure out on your own." He said. "We Gods might be powerful, but we're not miracle workers. And I don't think sweet Aphrodite would be very happy if I went messing with her favorite daughter's head."

Cpov

February turned to March without much excitement. To no one's surprise Will won the state tournament and qualified for Nationals, and while we were all ecstatic for him, I don't think I'd ever see him less interested in track.

Ever since his father visited him, he'd been acting a little different. More serious than usual, and though when I asked him about it he said it was nothing, I knew there was something he wasn't telling me.

The good news however, was that finally after weeks of rumors and gossip, people were finally bored of talking about the fact that popular Will Silverman and school screw up Cali Parker were dating.

Sure, there were plenty of people who didn't like me, girls who liked Will mostly, but I found that they were getting easier and easier to deal with now that Will and Madison were no longer my only friends.

Turns out, the drama club that I had no idea existed was full of extremely cool people. Madison had taken to inviting me to hanging out with her theater friends, and I'd actually had a good time.

For the first time in a very long time, I was enjoying school. Most of my teachers no longer hated me now that I was passing their classes, and I finally had friends. But even with all of this great new stuff going on in my life, still the best part of it was Will.

I just couldn't understand how one person could have changed my life so much. For the first time in a long time, I was actually happy, and it wasn't just because he was my boyfriend. For the first time in my life, I had someone I could talk to about anything. Monsters, friends, homework, fears, nothing was too much for him to handle. Even if he kept some things to himself, he was always there to listen whenever I needed him. He was the only person who knew everything about me, inside and out, and he still wanted to be around me. He knew both the good and the bad, and he was helping me focus on the good.

"How the hell do you do this?" I asked in frustration and he grinned.

"Just be patient." He said sounding amused.

"You make it seem so easy."

"Yeah, well," he said his smile turning dubious and taking the doorknob, which housed the lock I was trying to pick, off the table and inspecting it. "I've got a natural born talent for this, and a whole lot more practice. In fact, I don't even really need these tools to open locks. They just make it easier." He tossed it back to me. "Try again."

We were in his apartment at dining room table, alone for the moment, and had finished our homework, so he'd decided to take lock off his bedroom door and let me try and open it without his help. Over the passed few days he'd been teaching me how to pick locks, he thought it might come in handy if Chiron ever did send me on a mission. I'd managed to open a few bike locks, but I was having trouble with doors.

Most couples on a Friday night probably would have gone out on a date, but that was one of the many great things about having Will for a boyfriend. He knew how I felt about traditional couple behavior and tended to avoid it at all cost. We'd been on a few dates, he'd brought me to a few parties with his friends, but for the most part our time spent together was doing stuff like this.

It took several more minutes, but finally, after a lot of frustration and swearing on my part, I heard a soft 'click' and the lock turned.

"Excellent." Will said his smile growing. "Now if you're being chased by monsters and need to get through a door, all you'll have to do is ask for them to wait politely for ten minutes while you work."

"Very funny." I said sarcastically tossing him the lock, which he easily caught.

"Don't take it personally Cal." He said lightly. "You're the first person I'm not related to that has been able to do it."

"Who else have you tried to teach?" I asked curiously.

"Just some old friends." He said casually and by that I knew he meant people he knew before he moved.

"Something I'm guessing you don't want to talk about?"

"You're a smart girl." He said resetting the lock and putting it on the table. "Try again."

I grabbed the lock and got to work, but my mind was lost in thought. Will never wanted to talk about his past. Anytime it was ever brought up, he'd get really quiet and I could see him tense. For what felt like the millionth time I wondered what could have happened that made him act like this. Could it really have been that bad?

The lock was much easier to pick the second time time, but I knew that I would never be as fast as Will. Just as I'd managed to unlock it a third time, his front door opened and we looked up to see his mother walking through it with her arms full of groceries.

"Will, your coach called and said you needed to turn in a form for the school you'll be missing while registering for the Nationals, oh hello Cali." She said smiling at me.

I waved.

I wasn't sure why, but I still felt a slight amount of awkwardness around Will's parents. It didn't make any sense, they'd been nothing but nice to me, but maybe that was why. Dave was always offering to help me in school or giving me advice about college, and Karen treated me more like a daughter than her son's girlfriend. After all of things I knew they knew about me, they still accepted me. It was like nothing I'd known from my mother and father, and it was almost a little embarrassing when I compared the two.

"What are you two up to?" she asked putting the bags down on the kitchen counter and walking over to us. "Oh," she said spotting the lock and Will's tools.

She gave him an uneasy look and I remembered what he said about his parents not liking it when he picked locks.

"Will thought it might be a good skill for me to learn." I explained before things could escalate. He looked ready for a fight. "You know, if monsters ever attacked."

"I suppose." She said frowning. "Well I'll be impressed if you ever get as good as him. There's almost nothing he can't get into when he puts his mind to it."

She'd said it casually as she walked back to put the groceries away, but he didn't smile, and I could feel the unspoken conversation they were having, even if I didn't know that was being said.

"You should probably put this back on your door." I said holding out the door knob to him, thinking it was best to separate him from his mother and let him calm down. I'd never seen things so tense between them.

"Yeah you're right." He said standing.

I was surprised when he took my hand, but let him drag me back to his room.

I sat on his bed, watching him reattach the door knob, feeling distinctly out of place. Although I spent most of my time in his apartment when we were home, I'd only been in his room a few times. Though she never said anything, I'd gotten the impression that his mother didn't want us alone in here.

He, however, didn't seem bothered in the slightest. After he'd finished reattaching the door knob, he flopped back onto his bed and pulled me down so I was laying beside him.

"You want to tell me what that was all about?" I asked raising an eyebrow and turning to face him.

"Don't worry about it." He said closing his eyes and putting an arm around my waist so he could pull me closer.

I knew better than to press the subject. Will was one of those people who you couldn't convince to share things unless he was ready, and trying to convince him otherwise would only make him angry and less likely to say anything. So even though part of me was burning to ask what was going on, I let it go. Instead I voiced another question.

"So, why do you have to miss school to go run at the nationals. I know it's kind of far away, but isn't it on a weekend?"

"It's like that every year." He said not opening his eyes. "Runners have to show up a couple of days early, register, get a feel for the track, that kind of thing. We all stay in the same hotel, sometimes they host little events like a dinner or a social for the runners to get to know each other."

"Sounds like fun." I said.

He shrugged and I felt a tug from my hair has he toyed with a strand of it, apparently unaware of what he was doing. "You meet some cool people but they're all competition so no one gets too friendly."

"I'm not going to have to worry about you meeting some California girl and you two sneaking off to your hotel room am I?" I asked and he grinned.

"You know me better than that Cal." He said looking down at me. "You really think I'd be doing that the night before a race?"

He made a good point. The day before a race Will went a bit nuts. He drank like eight bottles of water, refused to drink soda or eat any junk food, only ran one mile, which for him was nothing, and went to bed no later than ten.

"She might be really pretty." I said shrugging. "You know how blondes are around you."

"I don't care how pretty anyone is." He said shaking his head. "No girl is worth losing the title. Well…" his eyes met mine. "Maybe one girl."

I felt myself blush.

"Now if you felt like showing up in my hotel room…" he said with a suggestive smile and pulling me closer.

"You'd be in bed by nine thirty." I said rolling my eyes.

"Doesn't mean I'd be sleeping." He said with a smirk and then pulled me into a kiss.

The familiar feeling of wanting to be closer to him spread through me as it always did when we kissed. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him pull me so close our bodies pressed together as his fingers ran through my hair.

The world seemed to have stopped spinning. Nothing mattered, he was the only important thing, and I felt my heart rate increase as I felt his finger tips brush the skin of my back. A shock went through me emanating from the place he'd touched but I didn't care, I liked the way it felt. I was hyper aware of everything he was doing, his heart was beating as crazy as mine was, but even still I didn't realize he'd pulled me on top of him until his mother tapped on the door.

We broke apart as she said.

"Cali, Will, dinner is ready."

"Alright." Will called back and though his voice was normal, he was looking at me with that crazy intensity I'd come to associate with important track meets.

I felt my cheeks flush, pushed myself off of him, and stood up.

I checked my hair in the mirror on his door, but as always it was perfect.

"We should probably go eat." I said but unlike Will, I wasn't able to make my voice sound normal.

"Probably." He said also standing, but he didn't move towards the door. Instead, he slid his arms around my waist from behind, then kissed me on the cheek and whispered. "Personally though, I wouldn't have minded waiting."

My breath caught in my chest and I felt my heart rate spike, but he let me go and led me out of the room.


	45. Chapter 45

Honestly, I wasn't planning on uploading anything today but when I checked my email I saw people asking me to continue so here's the next chapter! Thanks for the reviews/favorites/follows that really mean a lot. Can't thank you guys enough! Hope you enjoy!

~Secrethalfblood

...

Cpov

Over the next week, with the exception of a few monster attacks, life was pretty good.

My father had been asked to photograph for some famous fashion show in Paris so I had the apartment to myself for a whole week, and for the first time in years, Max's mother had allowed us to hang out on our own.

To no one's surprise, Will had been nominated for prom king as well as various other popular students. I had no doubt he'd win, but if I was honest, I wasn't looking forward to prom or all of the extra attention he was getting from girls because of it, but there were worse problems to have. It wasn't as if he flirted with any of them.

But I should have known things were going to well to last. On Friday, just as I'd thought I'd made it to the weekend without any problems, Madison's prediction about Tyler came true.

Will had needed to stay after school with his coach for something to do with his trip to nationals so it was the first time since we'd been back I'd walked home alone. The moment I'd turned the corner of the street our school was on, I felt something grab my jacket and I was dragged into an alleyway.

Instinct took over and I drew my daggers, ready for a fight, but when I managed to separate myself from the attacker, it was not the monsters I had been expecting. It was Tyler, and he was giving me his usual smirk.

"Whoa, whoa clam down there Parker." He said putting up his hands in mock surrender. "No need to arm yourself, it's just me."

"Go away." I said angrily.

"That's cold." He said in amusement. "Is that really the way you should speak to a friend?"

"We're not friends."

"Now you're just being rude." He said his tone hurt but heavy with sarcasm. "But I guess you have stopped following me around like the pathetic lonely little girl you used to be." He smirked. "Nice bow by the way."

I felt myself blush. There had been a peprally at school today, and while I usually wasn't into the whole school spirit thing. Madison had convinced me to wear the school colors, purple and black, and she'd put a huge purple and black bow into my ponytail to cap it all off.

"Leave me alone." I said annoyed trying to push passed him. I didn't have to deal with this. But Tyler stepped in front of me, blocking my path.

"I heard your boyfriend got nominated for prom king."

"So?"

"So I'm just wondering," he said his eyes cruel. "Does that make you royal by association? Should I start calling you Queen Cali? Or would a bow in your presence be enough?"

"Screw off." I said annoyed finally managing to push passed him, but he followed me.

"You know it's funny. A few months ago, I'd say he's not your type, but I guess we both know that's not true."

That caught my attention.

I stopped and turned to face him. He'd tried to play this off as if it didn't mean anything to him, but his tone was bitter, almost resentful, and I could tell that he cared a lot more about this than he was willing to let on. Was Madison right? Was he jealous?

"What are you talking about?" I asked frowning.

"You know what I'm talking about." He said darkly. "But I must say I'm not surprised you moved on to him. It's right out of your playbook isn't' it? You always had to go for the worst thing around. I guess once you found out about Silverman, I just couldn't meet your standards could I?"

"What do you mean?" I asked confused. I thought most people were upset because this was going against the status quo. How could this possibly be characteristic of me?

"Don't try and act all naive." He said his sneer growing. "He might act all innocent, but everyone knows what you are, and we both know what he is."

"I still don't know what you're talking about." I said irritated. Tyler was making no sense.

"You know what I mean." He said and he looked angry now.

"No I don't." I said frustration. "So either explain what you're talking about or leave me alone."

He looked at me for a full thirty seconds, suspicious in his eyes, but it faded and his face relaxed into what was almost a curious expression.

"Wait…" he said raising an eyebrow. "You don't know?"

"Know what?"

His smile had returned.

"He hasn't told you?" he asked laughing bitterly. "Oh my god Parker. You seriously don't know? Don't tell me you're actually dating him for the boy scout he is now."

"Shut up." I said furiously I said trying to turn away but he caught my arm. "Shut up and leave me alone."

"Oh this is precious." He said. "You actually think by dating him you're turning your life around don't you?"

I froze.

"What do you mean?" I asked turning back to him.

Tyler's smile grew.

"You think you're staying out of trouble by staying away from me don't you?"

"I know I am."

"And you think your life will be better around him? Is that what this good girl act is all about, for him?'

Anger and embarrassment flooded through me.

"I'm doing it for myself you jack ass."

"And you honestly think Silverman is good for you?"

His tone was different now, and so was his expression. Was it just me or did he look concerned?

"Better than you ever were." I said feeling no pity. This was so typical of him, pretending like he cared about me just to pull me in. But it was all an act, I knew it now, and I knew what it was like to have someone who genuinely cared. I wasn't falling for it ever again. "You were nothing but trouble."

"You think I'm bad Parker?" he asked and there was a slight bitterness to his voice. "I'm nothing, nothing compared to your boyfriend. If you really want to get your life together, he's the last person you should hang around."

"You are so full of-"

"Think about it Cali," he said and the use of my first name caused me to reconsider. He was serious. "How do you think Will found out where you were that night? Why were those men so afraid of him that they just let us go? Haven't you noticed he never talks about his life before he moved?"

I didn't answer.

"He doesn't talk about it around you does he?" he asked with a smirk. "Think. What could he possibly have been doing that makes him so reluctant to talk about it, even to his own girlfriend?"

I didn't answer, but I could tell from his expression that I didn't have to. The truth was, he was asking the same questions I'd been asking myself for a long time now, but was too afraid to seek the answers to. But from the way he was speaking, it sounded as if Tyler had found them for himself.

"You're a smart girl Parker." He said his voice low. "Smart enough to figure it out, and if he cared anything about you, he'd leave you alone."

I didn't know what to say. Something like fear was clawing at the inside of me and I wanted to push it away, but what Tyler had said had made sense. What was going on?

But before I could ask anything else a voice said.

"Cali?"

I looked up to see that Will had found us, his meeting with his coach must have ended, and he'd heard our voices.

"Don't say I didn't warn you." Tyler said softly as I tried to pull away from him. Will noticed.

"Get off of her!" He shouted quickly closing the gap between us, not for the first time he was looking at Tyler like he was capable of murder.

"Will just leave it alone." I said pulling out of Tyler's grip and standing between the two.

"No."

"It's not worth it." I said noticing awkwardly that a few people from across the street had come to look down the alleyway, obviously debating whether or not they should intervene.

"Cali he-" he started but Tyler cut him off.

"Relax Silverman. I've no interest in your girlfriend. Or you. I know where my limits are. I was just here to make sure that she knew what she was getting herself into." He looked at me.

"What are you talking about?" asked Will his eyes narrowed.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." He said then turned to me. "Good luck Parker." He finished with a sneer then started to walk away.

"Stay away from my girlfriend." Will said angrily.

Tyler didn't say anything, he was stared at Will for a second and I could almost see resentment in his eyes, but he didn't say anything.

"What was he saying?" Will asked looking worried turning back to me only after he was sure Tyler was gone.

"He was saying something about you being worse than him. Something about me staying out of trouble. What was he talking about?" I asked looking up at Will whose eyes were cold.

"Nothing." He said quietly.

"Why won't you tell me?"

"Because it doesn't matter anymore." He said shaking his head. "Let's just get home."

"But-"

"We're not talking about this." He said stiffly.

"Why?"

"Just forget about it."

"No." I said angrily. "Why should I?"

"Because I said so!" He shouted so angrily I stepped away. He'd never spoken to me like that before, no matter what I'd done.

He noticed, but unlike the last few times he was like this, the fury didn't dissipate when he saw that he'd scared me.

"Alright." I said uneasily while glancing at him. He still looked so angry.

Part of me wanted to try and use my powers to calm him down, but the other part was too afraid of what would happen if he figured it out and it didn't work so I kept quiet all the way home.

"Have you got any homework?" he asked stiffly as we entered the apartment building.

"Just to read."

He nodded. Will rarely had to help me these days, but it had become a habit to do our work together in his apartment after school.

"You can do that on your own." He said more to himself than me.

"What are you going to be doing?" I asked him as we crossed the lobby and stepped into the elevator.

"I'm going for a run."

I didn't bother to point out that he'd already run before school, it was clear that there was no reasoning with him at this point and maybe it would make him feel better.

We reached the fifth floor and walked to our apartments, but when I reached for my door he frowned.

"What are you doing?"

"Well you're not going to be here." I said awkwardly. "I'm just supposed to sit in your apartment by myself?"

"Just wait at my place, my mom won't care. You practically live here anyways."

This was true. I spent so much time at his house I knew pretty much everything about their place, I only came home to sleep really.

"Alright." I said still not sure how to handle Will when he was like this other than to just do what he said.

I followed him into the apartment and sat down at the table while he crossed back into his room to change.

"My mom will be home soon." He said walking back into the room in running clothes. "Try to stay out of trouble ok?"

"I will if you do." I said evenly. I noticed he'd been brushing his ring with his thumb, something told me that this run might have been less about training and more of an attempt to find monsters to let his anger out on.

His response was to cross the room in silence and walk out the door.

Wpov

That night I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about what Tyler had been saying to Cali. I couldn't get it out of my head.

After hours of contemplating and tossing and turning, I sat up with only one thought in my head.

Tyler needed to keep his mouth shut, and I had to make sure nothing like this afternoon happened again.

Sneaking out after my parents and Cali had gone to bed wasn't difficult. Neither was finding Tyler.

"I thought I'd be seeing you eventually." He said humor in his voice when he spotted me as I approached him and his friends in the parking lot of an abandoned superstore they were smoking in. I'd dragged Cali away from this place many times, it was a favorite of his. "But not here. What would Cali think?"

"Nothing." I said darkly. "Because she won't know I'm here."

"First you lie about who you are. Now you're lying about where you're going." He made a noise of distain. "Clearly, you're great boyfriend material."

"What do you mean I'm lying about who I am?"

"You know exactly what I mean." He said his eyes narrowing. "Or does the word Chaos not sound familiar?"

Cold fear stabbed the inside of my body like shards of ice.

"You see, after you so generously left me in that parking lot, I started to wonder just how exactly you found us and how you seemed to know exactly what was going on. I did some digging." His smile grew. "You really were a nasty piece of work weren't you? I have to say Will I'm almost impressed. I'm not used to meeting people with a bigger rap sheet than mine."

He was sitting on the roof of his friend's car, looking down at me with distain, but I knew it was an act to look tough in front of his entourage. I could see the fear in his eyes.

"Screw the bullshit Tyler, what did you tell her?"

"The truth." He said jumping down and walking up to me. "Or at least enough of it. What you were too much of a coward to tell her."

"It's for her own good." I said coldly.

"Is it?" he asked coolly while he raised an eyebrow. "Is it really for her good, or yours?"

"You don't know what you're talking about." I spat. He could never understand.

"I know more than you think I do. And a lot more than she does. Things she should know."

"Who are you to decide that?"

He didn't answer for a moment. Clearly what he was going to say he didn't really want his friends to hear.

"Someone who cares about her." He said eventually. "I know you think I don't but it's true. I care about Cali."

At this I laughed.

"Yeah." I said acidly. "Right. Enough to get her into trouble. Did you forget you nearly got her killed?"

He looked angry for a second but managed to pull it off into a sneer.

"I cared about her enough never to lie," he said darkly. "With me she knew exactly what she was getting. I was upfront." At this point he sounded bitter. "Maybe I couldn't be some pretty boy track star to come in and save her from her father. But at least I was honest. Unlike you."

"Get to the point Lang. You're pissing me off. And I don't think you want to go another round with me." I said. I was ready to kick his ass again and he was giving me plenty of reasons too.

"I'm saying if you really cared about Cali you'd stay far away from her. And deep down, I think you know that. Unless you want her to be with you when you're old gang buddies come around."

I grabbed him and pushed him up against the car.

"If you say anything-"

"Relax." he said coughing as he tried to catch the breath I'd just knocked out of him. "I'm not stupid enough to tell her, or start anything with them. I know what you'd do to me if I did. But Cali's not an idiot. And she deserves to know the truth about you."

"Who I am today. That's who I really am."

"We both know that's not true." He said with a humorless laugh and I let him go. "I don't know why you came here, or what caused you to act like her guard dog, but she's not stupid. She's going to figure it out. The kind of shit you did isn't something that can be hidden forever."

"Stay away from her." I said dropping him and turning and walking away.

"One last thing Silverman." He said and I stopped, but didn't turn around. "What happens if she finds out about you, and doesn't like what she finds? Who's going to 'protect'," I could tell he sneered as he said the word. "Her then?"


	46. Chapter 46

Cpov

Will never explained what Tyler was talking about, and just as I was thinking things were finally working themselves out, they started falling apart again. My father didn't come home from Paris over the weekend like he was supposed to, and I hadn't heard a word from him. Max's mother was considering moving to Florida to be closer to her family, and Will had grown distant over the past few days.

I was lucky to have Madison and Sadie to talk to these things about now, if I hadn't I probably would have gone right back to getting into trouble again, but still, even if I had friends to talk to now, that didn't stop the nightmares.

 _I was standing, bound by chains of glowing pink gold light that tied me to the center of a Temple devoted to my mother. Behind me, she sat on a marble throne, out of sight, but I could feel her power. I was wearing a long flowing toga with several gold bracelets, a jeweled necklace, and my hair was pulled back in a braid so elaborate that I knew there was only one way it could possibly have been done. She'd given me her blessing._

 _Two figures watched as I struggled._

 _Both were boys, tall, and good looking and with a pang of horror I realized who they were. The boy on the right was Tyler, while the boy on the left was Will._

 _Tyler was wearing his usual smirk, no doubt loving seeing me in such a treacherous position, but I only had eyes for Will._

 _He made no move to help me, but instead watched in cold indifference with that same hard expression I'd come to associate with him and real rage._

 _"What's going on?" I asked quietly while trying to pull myself free. "Will?"_

 _He didn't answer, only continued to watch me in silence._

 _"He won't help you." Tyler said in amusement. He walked towards me._

 _"Don't touch me." I said backing away._

 _"I'd be less worried about you," he said with a smirk. "And more worried about your precious little brother."_

 _"What?" I asked confused, but I heard a scream and fear spread through my veins like poison chilling my blood._

 _Outside the temple, Max was trying desperately to break through an invisible barrier that prevented him from entering. I watched in horror as monsters slowly rose from the ground and started climbing the steps._

 _"Max!" I cried forgetting everything and trying to run to him, but I felt a jerk and was thrown from my feet as the chain held me back._

 _Tyler let out a cruel laugh._

 _"Will." I said desperately pushing myself off the ground and looking up at him. "Help him."_

 _But he said nothing, only continued to stare at me with that cruel detached interest while Tyler's laughter grew louder and insane. But Tyler wasn't Tyler any more, he was my father._

 _"I've finally done it." He said stepping closer to me. "I've finally caught you."_

 _He reached out for me but I pushed myself to my feet and stepped back, getting as far away as the chains would let me._

 _"Dad." I said recognizing the insane look in his eyes. "It's me."_

 _But he wasn't listening._

 _"You can't leave me ever again." He said softly._

 _"I'm Cali!"_

 _"SHUT UP!" he shouted angrily raising his hand to hit me, but this time Will did intervene. Quicker than the eye could follow his sword was drawn, he grabbed my fathers shoulder and drove the blade mercilessly into his abdomen. My father dissolved into black smoke._

 _Max let out another scream._

 _"Will you have to save him!" I said pleadingly. "Please."_

 _But he lowered his sword. The smoke that had come from my father was swirling now and taking a new form. This one a girl with long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes._

 _"What do we have here?" Amorette said with a wicked smile and cruel amusement in her eyes. "Oh Cali," she said with a feigned sigh. "What have you gotten yourself into this time? Do you need your babysitter to get you out of trouble again?"_

 _"Please Will." I said my voice breaking as the chains began sinking into the ground, pulling me to my knees. "Help him."_

 _I couldn't control the terror any more, Tears slid down my face as I looked at him, begging for him to do something. Anything._

 _"He's not going to waste his time like you on a pathetic little mortal." Amorette said scathingly but her image was flickering between the blonde haired beauty and a figure emitting a bright golden light. "What use are you to anyone?" she asked me. "You're a pathetic excuse of a demigod and a train wreck of a person. You're not worth anything. Stop wasting people's time."_

 _She was glowing now, and just before the light over took her, she whispered something into Will's ear._

 _His expression didn't change, he simply watched impassively as I struggled frantically against the chains, watching in terror as Max was dragged away by the monsters._

 _"No!" I screamed, the horror inside me threatening to tear me apart. I felt as if someone had ripped out my soul and was now beating it on the temple floor "Max!"_

 _I looked back to Will desperately trying to think of anything to do or say to make him do something, but before the words had reached my mouth, they died as I stared in utter shock at the two people in front of me. The girl standing next to Will was no longer Amorette._

 _She had long brown hair, and bright eyes that were shifting fluidly from blue to green as easily as waters from the sea. Like me, she was wearing a long toga with exquisite jewelry and her hair feel down her back in graceful waves. She was so beautiful, it almost hurt to look at her, but I couldn't look away. There was only one person this could be._

 _"Mom?" I asked uncertainly. With each step she took towards me, I could feel the power radiating from her increasing._

 _"Callista." She said with a dazzling smile, and though the room seemed to glow brighter with it's radiance, but I also felt something terrible. The misery of a thousand hearts breaking at once, from all the men who had loved her._

 _"Let me go." I begged. I couldn't stand to feel this. I couldn't stand to look at her. I needed to help Max. "Please, I'll do anything. Let me find my brother."_

 _She didn't answer me at first, merely contemplated my position it seemed, then she bent down and lifted my chin delicately with her hand._

 _She stared at me critically for a moment, then smiled for the second time._

 _"You are without a doubt, my finest creation."_

 _"What?" I asked panic and confusion making my brain slow. What was going on? Why was she coming to me now if she wasn't going to help me? "Mom, please!"_

 _"Don't worry love." She said standing again and looking at Will. "Nothing will hurt you. Will it?"_

 _She asked this to him, though it sounded less like a question and more of a threat._

 _He shook his head._

 _She began to walk away._

 _"No! Mom! Wait!" I shouted after her but she'd already stepped out of the temple and vanished._

 _The second she did, the chains broke, but so did the barrier around the temple that was keeping the monsters at bay. The room, which had been lit with that strange golden light, was now thrown into darkness, as the sky outside turned a raw colored red. I heard the howls and cackles of the monsters as they climbed up the steps and forced their way through the columns, claws cracking the marble, hisses filling the air which smelled like acid and blood. They were ready for a fight._

 _I forced myself to my feet and reached for my daggers, ready to fight but found that they were no longer with me._

 _I could hear Max's screams again. They echoed around the temple, bouncing off the marble walls._

 _I covered my ears, but they only grew louder and soon I was screaming too. Screams of agony and grief. He was gone. I was never going to see him again._

 _Tears continued to steak down my face as defenseless, I fell to my knees, waiting for the monsters to take me. Surely anything, even death, was better than this._

 _I collapsed. I'd lost the will to live, Max was gone and Will was just standing there doing nothing, looking at me like a stranger. Just as I'd curled up waiting for death to take me, I felt myself being lifted off the marble floor._

 _I looked up in shock to see Will had picked me up in his arms._

 _"Relax Cali." He said softly, but he still didn't look like Will. His eyes were too cold, his voice too calm for what it should have been when we were surrounded by monsters, and his smile reminded me of Tyler's. "I'll make it all better."_

 _He was unrecognizable, and it terrified me. This wasn't Will, it couldn't be._

 _I struggled to break from his grip, but the more I struggled the tighter his hold became. Then his body too erupted into smoke, which swirled around me. Max's screams echoed in the cold winds which snaked around me, restraining me. I was unable to move, his screams were so loud I thought my ear drums would burst, cold air was choking me, making it impossible to breath and as I thought I couldn't take it anymore…_

I sat up in bed wide eyed and terrified, gasping for air. I looked frantically around while snatching my daggers off of my nightstand, only to realize I was alone in my dark room. No monsters were around me, Will was in his room, probably asleep at this point, and Max was safe at his mothers.

I forced myself to take deep breaths while my heart slammed itself against the inside of my rib cage.

"Just a nightmare." I said softly to myself. "It wasn't real."

But this didn't help. Even if what happened in the dream hadn't happened in real life, as Will had said to me several times before, demigod's rarely had just dreams. Often times visions like this served as a warning, and something just felt wrong.

I fell back onto my bed and pulled a pillow over my eyes, my body still shaking slightly. How was I supposed to fall asleep after that? What did it mean?

I tossed and turned for several minutes until I couldn't take it anymore. I sat back up.

I glanced at the clock on my nightstand and saw that it was three thirteen in the morning. Great. I had school in a few hours.

I really needed to sleep, but I didn't want to be alone.

Maybe I was paranoid, but I couldn't shake the feeling something bad was going to happen.

I stared at my window.

Even if he had been distant lately, I knew there was one person who could understand what I was going through. He might even be able to make me feel better, although I wasn't sure how.

Before I was even aware of making a conscious decision, I'd slid open my window and climbed out onto the fire escape into the freezing night. After I'd made sure mine was shut, I tapped on his window.

I shivered, it was still only March and while I expected it might take a while for him to wake up, I was pleased to see his window open almost immediately.

"Cali?" Will asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes as I slid onto his bed, but he seemed to focus when he caught my expression. "What's wrong?"

I didn't answer at first, but hugged him, closing my eyes and thanking the Gods that I no longer saw that cold expression on his face. This was the Will I knew, and I never wanted to let him go. I never wanted for him to feel like that stranger ever again.

"It's alright." He said quietly putting his arms around me and pulling me closer as I leaned my head against his chest. "Cali, everything's going to be ok. What happened?"

But I shook my head, and closed my eyes tighter together, horrified to feel tears, real tears this time, coming out.

He noticed.

"Nightmares?" he asked softly while stroking my hair and I knew that whatever had been on his mind that had caused him to be so distracted lately, wouldn't be a problem tonight.

I nodded.

"Don't worry." He whispered pressing his lips to the top of my head. "Everything is going to be fine, I promise."

"You can't promise that." I said my voice trembling.

"Yes I can." He said and I looked up at him. "I will never let anything happen to you," he said placing a hand on the side of my face and brushing a tear away with his thumb. "Understand?"

I nodded.

I felt stupid for crying and I felt weak for having to run to him just because I had a bad dream, but he was looking at me with such concern, that I almost instantly forgot my embarrassment.

Had he always looked at me like that?

I thought back to the very first day Will had moved into the apartment next door. My father hadn't been home and he'd come over to introduce himself with some lame excuse that he didn't know very many people his age. I immediately shut him down, I thought he was trying to hit on me at first, like all the boys in the building had, but I did remember thinking he was weird. He didn't look at me like most boys did. I thought the same thing the first time he'd found me struggling against monsters, a horde of cyclopses had cornered me after I'd gone to see a movie with Max and I realized he must have been a demigod as well, though I still hadn't recognized him from camp.

Thinking back, he had always looked at me like that, different from any other boy I'd ever met. Over the past few years I'd gotten used to it. So why was I noticing it again now?

Neither of us spoke for a moment, and again he brushed my cheek with his thumb, then kissed me.

At first I was taken off guard, but I quickly slid my arms around his neck and allowed him to pull me closer to him. It was then I realized that he hadn't been wearing a shirt.

Far from bothering me, I let him pull me back down to the bed with him, letting every feeling of pain, and terror, and frustration burn out of me as we continued to kiss. As long as I was with him, I could believe that nothing else would go wrong.

I didn't know how long we stayed like that, but eventually I found myself with his arms around my waist, and my head leaning on his chest as I listened to his heart beat.

"Try and sleep Cali." He said softly but my eyelids were already getting heavy. "I'm not going to let anything happen."

I wanted to argue. I wanted to tell him there was no way he could be sure. Between monsters, the Gods, and the inexplicable tendency for everything in a demigod's life to go wrong, I didn't want to hear him promise something I knew he couldn't control, but I kept my mouth shut. I let him say it.

I wasn't sure why, all rational reasoning pointed against it, but when it came to Will, my rationality didn't seem to apply. He always managed to fix everything, no matter how impossible, I'd never seen him fail. So I trusted him. I believed in every word he said, even though I knew I shouldn't have, and I wasn't entirely sure why.

Maybe it was because I wanted to. I wanted to believe him because they were the words I wanted to hear, so I trusted everything he said, even if they were lies.

Wpov

Cali didn't tell me what her nightmare was about. She tried to tell me not to think about it too much, but I was worried. First my father showed up with a gift for me, and then she started having nightmares again. Something was wrong but I wasn't sure what.

"Will!"

"What?" I asked looking up from my phone, I'd been waiting for Cali to text me back. Around me I saw that people were heading towards their classrooms and I realized that the warning bell must have rang.

"Get a move on will you?" Chris asked shutting my locker door and motioning for me to walk with him to the gym. "If you don't hurry we're going to be late."

"Sorry." I said and after glancing at my phone again, I put it in my pocket.

"Why are you so distracted today man?" he asked raising an eyebrow. "Since when do you text during school?"

I shrugged.

"Seriously." He pressed. "You've been different lately, lost in your own little world. You didn't even turn up for weight training this morning."

Every Monday, the serious members of track team got together before school and lifted in the weight room. Now that we were out of season, far less people attended but Chris and I always went.

"I can't miss one day?" I asked shrugging.

"You never have before."

I didn't answer. I'd woken up in time to go to training this morning, but I really didn't want to leave Cali alone after last night. She'd seemed so upset but this morning when I woke up and she was still sleeping she'd seemed perfectly at ease. I didn't want to take that from her before I had to.

"Dude I'm trying to talk to you." He said putting a hand on my shoulder and preventing me from entering the changing room.

"Why?" I asked starting to feel annoyed.

"Because this isn't like you." He said looking just as frustrated, if not more. "And this is what best friend's do, so, what's up?"

I stared at him, wondering how much, if anything, I should say. How did you explain to a mortal that your girlfriend was half Greek God and was having prophetic nightmares that might mean a quickly impending doom? Well the answer to that was simple. You didn't.

"Cali slept over last night." I said trusting that this would be enough information to keep him satisfied.

"Oh." He said shortly, then realization dawned on him and I knew what he must be thinking. "Oh." He said but this time with a smile. His voice had totally changed. "Do you mean-"

"I'm not talking about this." I said pointedly while walking into the changing room.

"Is that why you keep checking your phone?" he asked. "Waiting for your girlfriend to text back?"

I ignored him.

"C'mon." he said nudging me. "I'm not going to say anything to anyone, so tell me."

"Tell you what?" a voice asked curiously and both turned to see Max, who'd already changed into his gym uniform, had walked over to the senior locker row of the changing room.

"Nothing." Chris and I said in unison so quickly, he raised an eyebrow.

"Right," he said suspiciously. "Anyways, Will, how come you weren't in the weight room this morning?"

"I was with Cali." I said throwing Chris a 'Keep your mouth shut' expression which thankfully, Max did not notice.

"Does this have anything to do with why she was freaking out this morning?"

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning. In the fifteen minutes we'd been apart, had she run into a monster or something?

"Don't look so worried jeez. She's fine." He said his eyes going wide when he caught my expression. "She just kept going on about how I couldn't let my Mom move us to Florida." He rolled his eyes. "I told her it's never going to happen. My Mom just likes the drama. I think she thought it would piss off our Dad. Either way, Cali's totally freaking out."

"Maybe." I said but I wasn't so sure. Had Max been in her nightmare? There were very few people, maybe no one actually, that Cali cared more about than her brother. And if he, a mortal, had showed up in her dreams then that was certainly something to worry about.

"Speaking of Dad." He said glancing up at me and I was pulled back to the present. "Has he come back yet?"

"No." I said frowning. "Why, was he supposed to?"

"He was supposed to this weekend, but last time I asked her Cali said he wasn't home, and my Mom can't get a hold of him either."

"I haven't seen him." I said shrugging. To be honest I really wasn't that sorry. In fact, I was quite glad he was an ocean away. It was much easier to let Cali go home each night when I knew he wasn't there.

"I hope he gets back soon."

"Why?" I asked bitterly and both Max and Chris looked at me in shock.

It only just occurred to me that neither of them probably knew how he'd treated her. There was no way for Chris to find out, and it didn't seem like something she would tell her brother.

"Well." Max said cautiously. "I know he's a bit of a jerk sometimes, but I mean, if he doesn't come back soon what's Cali going to do? She's only sixteen, someone's bound to notice she's alone."

I hadn't thought about this. Why hadn't her father come back? I knew from the news that the fashion show he'd been working for had ended on Friday. What was he doing?

"Cali will be fine." I said making a mental note to talk to my parents about it soon.

"I guess." Max said uncertainly but the bell rang and all of the boys in the locker room headed towards the gym

"I'll see you guys later." Max said jogging to join up with a few of his friends in his class.

Chris looked at me expectantly.

"So…?" he asked grinning.

"What?"

"You and Cali…"

"Shut up." I said annoyed.

"Oh come on." He said with a smirk and following me as I walked into the gym. "You can't just tell me something like that and not give me details."

As usual, people were standing in little groups with their friends all across the gym. I saw Max, his girlfriend, and a couple of popular freshman on the far side, but Chris and I usually kept to ourselves in this class.

"Fine." He said eventually. "You don't want to talk about. But I've been meaning to ask you for a while now. Who's that girl she's always hanging around now?"

"Madison?"

"The theater chick?"

"Yeah, Madison."

"You know, she's kind of cute. Think I'd have a shot with her?"

"Please don't go creeping out Cali's best friend." I said. "Do you know how long it took for her to get people to talk to her?"

"Yeah, yeah, you're overly invested into your girlfriend's social life, what else is new." He said and I rolled my eyes. "But seriously. Do you think Cali would give me her number? Or maybe we all could go on a double date."

"You'll have to ask Cali that." I said shaking my head. "I'm not getting involved."

"Why not?"

"Because I've got enough problems with one girlfriend." I said thinking of all the things Cali and I had gone through just to get to this point. Monsters, magic, and only the Gods knew what else. "I don't need to be keeping track of yours."

"You're not wrong." He said. "I mean, I know you love her and all, but all this running around after her and constant checking up on her, do you ever think sometimes that maybe you're a little too obsessed with your girlfriend? I mean, don't get me wrong," he said when he caught my expression. "I like Cali, but even you have to admit, she's kind of taken over your life."

"What's your point?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno man," he said awkwardly lowering his voice when he noticed a group of junior girls looking at us curiously. "Like I said, I know how you are about her, and how a lot of the time all the trouble she used to get into wasn't strictly her fault. But I think she's making you a little paranoid. Sometimes I wonder if it's healthy."

This wasn't the first time I'd heard something like this. My coach, Dave, and even Max had said similar things to me, and they had a point, but it wasn't as if I had much choice in the matter.

"You don't understand." I said quietly.

"Don't understand what?" he asked frowning.

"It doesn't matter what anyone says or thinks, or what she does. All these crazy things that keep happening to her are never going to stop."

"You can't know that." He said skeptically.

"I do." I said shaking my head.

If there was monsters in a ten mile radius, they'd find her, if a cursed or magical object like that portal popped up, she'd stumble across it. Cali had the worst luck of anyone I knew, she always managed to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. That combined with being an extremely powerful demigod, was a recipe for disaster. I was actually kind of amazed she'd made it this far. Maybe that's why Aphrodite felt such a need to protect her. Had she known exactly what her daughter was going to go through? Was that what she'd wanted me for?

"So what, it's your job to look out for her?"

I thought of Max, who was a mortal, Tyler, who was a danger, her father, who'd never cared about her, and her siblings, who probably couldn't have protected her even if they tried. Everyone who she'd ever been close with wasn't capable of helping her, in fact, some of them only made things worse. I couldn't imagine how she'd gotten so far on her own.

"Yeah." I said realization sinking in. Cali might have been a capable fighter, but no one could fight alone forever, and I loved Cali more than anything. She might not have realized it at the time, but Aphrodite must have picked up on it when she'd suggested our deal. Everything fit. This was what was supposed to have happened, even if the goddess had played a part in it or not.

"Why?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"Because if I don't. No one else will."


	47. Chapter 47

Happy Halloween! Thanks for the reviews! Hope you enjoy the latest chapter.

~Secrethalfblood

...

Cpov

Tyler didn't speak to me after Will had confronted him that day in the alley and our lives went back to normal. Well as normal as the lives of a demigod could be. But even though I had friends and homework to distract me now, I couldn't help but revisit the questions he'd raised when he last saw me. I couldn't deny Tyler brought up some good points. There was so much I didn't know about Will, and I found more and more these questions were keeping me up at night.

Maybe that's why the nightmares were getting worse.

I was now spending most nights with Will. He kept his window unlocked knowing that there was a good chance on most days of the week I'd sneak over to his room in the early hours of the morning. I wasn't sure why, but it was easier to fall asleep when I was next to him. Even if I did have all these questions, it was nice to know that he was still there.

But just because I was suffering from a lack of sleep, didn't mean the rest of the world didn't keep moving.

"Can't we just pick something?" I asked in frustration as Madison and Sadie riffled excitedly through the rack of dresses in my size.

"Don't look so unhappy Cali." Madison said grinning and holding up a deep blue dress while Sadie held up a green one.

I didn't hate dressing up nearly as much as I used to, but I still didn't like to shop, and we'd been at the mall for more than four hours now. Both of them had picked out their dresses for our school's spring dance, and I was the last one who needed a dress before we could leave.

"What do you think?" they asked in unison putting the dresses side by side so I could compare.

"Give me the blue one." I said reaching for it and they grinned as I walked into the dressing room.

I wasn't really surprised that over the past few weeks, Sadie and Madison found that they'd gotten along very well. They'd met when Madison had come over to Will's with me before we all went to one of the drama department's parties and instantly hit it off. They got along so well in fact, that it was Madison who suggested that we invite Sadie to our school dance. Each person was allowed to bring one guest from outside of our school, so even though we both had dates, technically Sadie was our plus one.

After a series of awkward hops and shimmies to get into the dress, I zipped up the back and stared at myself. It was pretty, tight to the waist where it then became flowy to the knee and it went over one shoulder. I had to admit, I liked it. So I smiled and stepped out to show the girls.

"Wow." Madison said in approval. "You. Look. Amazing."

"She looks amazing in everything." Sadie said rolling her eyes. "But how do you like it?" she asked giving me a quizzical look.

I glanced in the 180 mirror that was on the outside of the dressing rooms and looked at the dress from all angles.

"I like it." I said eventually.

"Sixth times the charm!" Madison said excitedly. "Will's gonna die when he sees you."

"Can we go now?" I asked looking over my shoulder at them.

"Yes." They said in unison giving each other significant looks.

"Finally," I muttered.

"You're hopeless." Sadie said with a grin as I went back into the changing room and put on my regular clothes.

"So what do you guys want to do guys want to do?" I asked after we left the store and began walking back to my apartment building.

"We could go to the fair." Madison suggested. "The boys will be there."

By 'the boys' she meant Will, my brother, and Chris, her date for the upcoming dance.

Our school was hosting several events and games during the local town fair. The athletic department of our school was encouraging, which meant basically forcing, the athletes to help run things like the dunk tank, pop corn stands, and the cheer leader's kissing booth, all meant to bring funds to the athletic program.

"I'm game." Sadie said. "We could drop off our stuff and meet back in the lobby?"

"Sounds good to me." I said.

They started a conversation about what to expect for the upcoming dance, but I tuned them out when I noticed two men in suits were walking across the street from us.

I remembered seeing them in store as well.

I kept them in my peripheral visions for a while, expecting to catch a glimpse of monster like features through the mist, and readying to make and excuse to get away from the other two, but eventually, then men reached their car and got in. Well, that was a bit of a relief. While I was sure those men had been in the store with us, very few monsters bothered driving cars. They weren't very good at it, and to any demigod that was trained at all it was a pretty big give away as to what they really were.

"You ok?" Madison asked in concern looking back at me as I watched the car speed down the street passed us.

"Yeah." I said but she continued to look at me with a frown.

"What?" I asked.

"I dunno." She said looking up the street. "You just look worried about something."

Sadie was looking back now too, and I could see she too looked concerned.

"It's nothing." I assured them with a smile.

"You sure?" she asked still not looking convinced.

"Yeah." I said as we turned on to the street in which my apartment building was located. "Just my mind playing tricks on me I think."

"Alright." She said looking a little more comfortable, as we reached the building doors, but I felt a jolt go through me when I saw an unfamiliar car parked outside of our building. Inside were two men wearing dark suites staring right at me.

"Let's go inside." I said quickly. "Madison, you can keep your stuff at my place until we get back."

"Alright sounds good." She said brightly. "We'll meet you back here." She finished looking at Sadie who nodded.

We made our way into the building but I couldn't help and look back over my shoulder. The men were still there, but I didn't get a monster vibe from them. Who were they?

Wpov

Now that the end of March was here and we were finally having some decent weather, the town had decided to throw its annual fair.

I usually enjoyed the fair, I'd hoped it might be a good chance to spend some mortal time with Cali, but this year our coach was forcing us to volunteer and I had to admit I wasn't in the best mood about it. Even if it wasn't my shift, I had to stay the whole time in case anyone needed help. Cali had been dragged dress shopping with her friends, so not only was I working, I probably wouldn't be able to see her. A perfectly good Saturday ruined.

"I swear if I have smile for one more cougar I'm going to kill myself." Chris said meeting me back at our booth and rotating his shoulders looking sore.

"Kill them more like." I said bleakly. "Who's idea was this anyways?"

"Actually," Max said looking awkward. "It was mine."

We both stared at him in disbelief.

"Well this wasn't exactly what I had in mind." He said quickly.

Max's oh so brilliant idea was that the boys of the track team would offer their services to help people carry things around through the fair, anything from giant prize bears to popcorn and cheap gold fish so that the visitors could have their hands free while they walked about the fair. We were 'rented out' for an hour at a time and while in theory this was a good idea, there was only one problem. Our clientele.

The only people who seemed to want to hire us were love struck tweens and freshman who had nothing better to do, or bored divorced moms who wanted something to stare at while their kids ran around the fair.

"You've got a lot to learn about the world young Padawan." Chris said shaking his head. "Never expose young, fit, legal boys to the soccer moms. We're like catnip to them. I think one of them grabbed my butt." He finished looking over his shoulder at the back of his jeans for evidence.

"Well can you blame her?" said a voice and I looked up, my mood instantly improving. Cali, Madison, and Sadie were walking towards us through the crowd. "I mean, it is pretty nice."

It was Madison who spoke. She winked at Chris who immediately vaulted the counter and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Hello ladies." He said. "You girls are looking lovely today."

"Have you had any butt grabs?" Sadie asked me looking amused.

"No thankfully." I said shaking my head.

"What about you?" Madison asked grinning cheekily at Max.

He blushed while Cali's eyes narrowed at her brother and she said. "That answer had better be no."

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, sparing Max the need to respond.

"We thought we'd come visit you." Madison said while sliding an arm around Chris's waist. "Remind you boys on what you're missing out on."

Sadie laughed, and Cali smiled slightly. I wondered if she knew how true those words were.

"Is Amber here?" Madison asked curiously looking at Max.

"She's supposed to be working at the pop corn stand." He said gesturing to a bit further down the line. "All our shifts should be over in about ten minutes."

"Then we'll wait." Madison said happily.

"I'm going to go ahead." Sadie said shaking her head. "I've no intention of being the seventh wheel."

"What are you going to do?" Madison asked looking concerned.

"I just spotted a few friends from my school." she said already walking towards a group of girls that were waving at her. "I'll meet with you guys later during the fire works alright?"

"Ok." Madison said cheerfully then looked up at Chris. "You want to blow this Popsicle stand?"

"More than anything." He said with a grin. "Do you guys care if I cut out early?" he asked looking at Max and I.

We shook our heads.

"Alright, I'll see you later than." He said and together they walked towards the Farris wheel.

I noticed Cali watching them walk away and a strange thought occurred to me.

"Did you do that?" I asked her.

"What?" she and Max asked in unison. Cali seemed to be trying to look innocent while Max seemed genuinely confused.

"You set them up." I accused.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Cali said but I looked at her suspiciously.

"I thought you didn't like meddling with people's lives." I told her and she shrugged as she hopped up on to the counter of the booth.

"Who cares?" Max said and I suddenly remembered he had no inkling of his sister's powers. "They seem happy right? Besides, Cali's always had a knack for this sort of thing hasn't she? Of course you wouldn't know that." He said shrugging.

"Wh-" I started confused but Cali shot me a look and I shut up. Luckily, Max didn't seem to notice.

"It was before you moved here of course. She used to set up couples all the time at school. Help people with relationship problems and stuff. She used to be pretty popular, you know, until she started hating people."

"I don't hate people." Cali said calmly. "There are just an extraordinary amount of stupid people in the world."

He laughed.

"Well," Cali said looking back at us. "Should I leave and let you boys get back to work?"

"No." we both said quickly and she looked surprised.

"You're scaring away the soccer moms." I explained nodding towards several women who were looking this way. None of them seemed to want to approach a sixteen-year-old girl and tell her to stop talking to her friends. "You'd actually be doing us a huge favor if you stayed another five minutes or so until the next group shows up."

"Are you seriously afraid of the soccer moms?" She asked me incredulously. "You?"

"I'm not afraid." I said defensively and she raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, they're aggressive."

"You're a baby." She said rolling her eyes.

"And you're promoting a double standard." I said incensed. "How would you feel if we were girls and these were middle aged men being creepy?"

"I have middle aged men try to do a lot worse." She said taking one of her daggers out of bracelet form and twirling it casually.

"Where do you keep hiding those?" Max asked in frustration clearly not noticing the missing bracelet due to the mist. "It's like you pull them out of thin air."

"Magic little brother." She said ruffling his hair and he pushed it away with an irritated expression so similar to Cali's, I did a double take.

They were so different, sometimes I forgot they were related, but moments like these they were no doubt brother and sister.

"Hey! Silverman, Parker. Your shift is done."

All three of us looked over to see Coach waving at us as three of our teammates came to take our places.

"Sweet." Max said and we both vaulted the counter to stand next to Cali as she slid off it.

"Well, I'm going to go find Amber," Max said grinning. "What are you guys going to do?"

I looked down at Cali, who seemed to be lost in thought for a second, but came back when she noticed both of us staring at her.

"What?" she asked.

"What do you want to do?" I asked her.

"Well," she said thinking then smiled. "We could totally freak out the guy running the knife throwing demonstration. I'm pretty sure I could clean him out of his prizes."

I laughed while Max looked at his sister warily.

"You know you're scary sometimes Cal." He muttered. "He's a trained professional. You're a high schooler. What if you hit someone?"

"Max." she said with a touch of exasperation in her tone. "If I hit someone, it was because I was aiming for them."

I continued to laugh but Max said.

"Strangely, that doesn't make me feel any better."

Cali shrugged and he looked up at me.

"Try and keep an eye on her will you?" he said and though his tone was joking, I thought part of him looked serious. "The last thing Cali needs is to get arrested for accidentally stabbing someone."

"You're insulting my skills." Cali said crossing her arms and glaring up at her brother in such a big sisterly way, I smiled.

"You're a teenage girl!" he said walking away in exasperation. "You shouldn't have knife throwing skills at all."

She grinned and I took her hand.

"So what's on your mind?" I asked and she looked confused.

"Nothing." She said shrugging.

"You seemed a little out of it for a second there."

"Oh." She said frowning for a moment. "I dunno. I thought some guys were following me earlier, but I don't see them here."

"What guys?" I asked looking around trying to stay calm.

"I dunno. I've never seen them before."

"What did they look like?" I asked quickly.

"Not monsters." She said misinterpreting my fear. "They seemed to know me, but I didn't get any monster vibes from them and besides, they would have already attacked."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"I dunno. Early thirties, business suits."

"You're right that is weird." I said. For one heart stopping moment I'd thought Jonathan might not have been able to make good on his promise and Christian and his people were following Cali after all. I looked around again. "You said you don't see them there?"

"No." she said. "Last time I saw them, they were just waiting outside the apartment building in the parking lot."

"Alright well if they're still there when we get back, I'll talk to them."

She gave me a reproachful look.

"What?" I asked in surprise.

"I can take care of myself Will." She said sounding slightly annoyed. "I don't need you to take care of me."

"I know that." I said shrugging. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to."

She looked at me for a second, then looked away, but I could have sworn I saw her smile.

We continued to walk hand in hand for a minute and then she said.

"But seriously, what do you want to do?"

Before I could answer, a girl with long curly blonde hair and brown eyes hidden behind glasses skidded to a haul in front of us, clutching a large camera.

"Rachel?" I asked in shock as she panted.

Rachel was a girl in my year. I didn't know her well, only that she was in a few of my friends' photography class and took pictures for the yearbook. Clearly she'd been running around the fair looking for us.

"Oh Will, thank god I finally found you. Good, Cali's here too. You've got to come with me."

"Why?" I asked while Cali looked a little alarmed.

I noticed she didn't often speak around people she didn't know very well, or when she was in groups bigger than four or five people. For someone who was constantly the center of people's attention, she was pretty quiet. I'd even go as far as to say when she wasn't using charmspeak or trying to manipulate people, she was pretty shy.

"Pictures of course." She said holding up her camera and when neither of us seemed to grasp what she was saying she continued. "For the year book."

"Why are we in the year book?" Cali muttered to me as Rachel frantically gestured for us to follow her and pushed back through the crowd.

"I've no idea. But we'd better go. It might be important." I said feigning my concern and she grinned.

Still holding hands, we followed Rachel through the fair to a space where a group of students from our school was standing behind the tilt-o-whirl apart from the rest of the people. I noticed they were all seniors.

"What's going on?" I asked as we spotted Chris. "Where's Madison?"

"She's with her sister and Max. I think they're taking pictures for senior superlatives." He responded. "You know, best smile, best hair, that stupid stuff."

"Then what am I doing here?" Cali asked and he looked down.

"Oh, hey Cali." He said obviously just noticing her. "You know I never realized how short you were…"

He glanced up and I noticed we were surrounded by senior boys. He was right, in this group she was tiny.

"I'm not that short." She said irritably.

"You're pretty short Cal." I said and she scowled.

"Alright!" Rachel shouted and we all looked at her. "I'll call the names for each person in the running for each superlative award we'll take a group photo and individual shots. One of the PTA representatives will tell you when you're done with pictures and can leave."

"Do we really have to do this?" I muttered.

"Oh relax." Chris said was a grin. "It could be fun. How much you want to bet you're up for like half of the awards?"

He was kind of right.

Over the next twenty minutes I kept being dragged away for things like, 'most popular', 'best smile', 'most datable', and 'best to take home to your parents.' Chris went up for 'Most academic' 'Most involved'. We both went up for 'Most athletic' and were considered together for the boy version of 'best friends.' They'd just finished with, 'most likely to end up famous' when I thought we were done, but finally Rachel said.

"Alright everyone, last category. Cutest couple."

"So that's why you're here." I said looking down at Cali whose eyes went wide.

"I'm not getting in front of that camera." She said stubbornly.

"Oh c'mon." Chris said with a smirk. "It won't be that bad."

A few couples were photographed and I saw Cali's eyes narrow. She looked angry.

"Half of these people only stayed together for the award."

"That seems rather cynical." Chris said and I remembered that he didn't know Cali had unnatural insight to people's relationships. "How could you possibly know that?"

"I'm a people person." She said stiffly and he laughed.

"Ok Cali." He said amused. "Whatever you say."

"Will! Cali!"

"Let's go." I said grinning and she groaned.

"I don't want-" she started but I dragged her towards the Rachel.

"I still can't believe people voted for us." She said darkly.

"Just relax and take the picture."

"Do something cute." Rachel said happily.

"Cute?" Cali asked skeptically. "I don't do cute. Whoa, Will what are you-"

I picked her up in my arms.

"Just smile." I said as she slid her arms around my neck for stability.

She did as she was told and I grinned as well.

There was a flash and I let her down.

"Wait, it's over?" she asked.

"See, not bad."

"I guess not." She said her cheeks a little pink.

I took her hand and we walked back to Chris.

"You guys are so adorable." He said smirking at Cali.

"Shut up." she said glaring at him and he laughed.


	48. Chapter 48

Cpov

I didn't see the men over the next few days, and there was no monster activity in the area so I let my guard down. The week passed in a normal fashion and I'd almost completely forgotten about them until one day, I'd been walking home with Will laughing at one of our stupid inside jokes when I noticed the two men standing outside my door.

"Who are you?" Will asked his eyes narrowing as we stopped several feet down he hall from them.

"Are you Callista's brother?" the man on the right asked. He was tall and black with short dark hair, a deep voice, and expensive looking glasses.

"No." he said coldly. "I'm her boyfriend."

"Then you won't mind if we borrow her from you for a minute." The one on the left said. He too was tall, but he was white, with cropped brown hair and the same no none sense attitude as his partner. "We'd like to talk to her in private."

"I would mind." He said stepping protectively in front of me.

"Calm down Will." I said as normally as I could, putting a hand on his shoulder and stepping out from behind him, but my stomach had clenched.

"Who are you?" I asked. But I had a feeling I knew the answer.

"We're people who want to help." The one on the right said trying to sound kind, but also still managing to sound authoritative at the same time.

"That's not an answer." Will said and I noticed his ring finger twitching.

"Alright." He said putting his hands up in the universal symbol of 'we mean no harm' and pulling out an ID badge from his jacket pocket. "My name is agent Dawley, and this is agent Higgs."

"Agent?" Will said looking confused, but I started to back away.

"We just had a few questions about Callista's father."

"I don't want to talk to you." I said quickly panic flooding through me.

"Why do you care about Cali's Dad?" Will asked frowning the he looked at me. "Cali what's wrong?"

"They're CPS." I said bitterly.

"CPS?" he said confused, but then realization hit him and he looked back at the men. "Child Protective Services?"

"I'm not going with you." I said angrily.

"Cali," The white one, Higss, said soothingly. "We're not taking you anywhere. We just want to talk."

"Don't lie to me." I said angrily. I'd dealt with CPS before. It never ended well. They'd tried to set me up in a foster home six states away when I was thirteen, but I made my way back. I'd managed to charmspeak my last social worker into lying and telling them I hadn't come home. But someone must have said something.

"Who called you?" I demanded.

"You know we're not at liberty to give you that information."

"Who?" I shouted using charmspeak and while Dawley managed to keep his mouth shut, Higgs said.

"Katharine Godwin."

"Max's Mom?" Will asked in surprised. "Why?"

"Because she wanted to help." Dawley said in a warning tone. "Just like we do."

"She hates me!" I shouted.

"She just wanted to make sure you were being taken care of. She said your father's been gone for weeks." He continued.

"That's none of her business." I spat. "And she doesn't give a damn about me. I'm fine."

"So it's true then?" Higgs said and his partner threw him a warning look that he ignored. "Your father still isn't back yet?"

"That shouldn't matter to you."

"I think you'll find that the law would disagree." Dawley said shortly.

"Screw your freakin law." I said losing my temper but Will cut in at this point.

"Cali's not on her own. She spends most of her time at my place, my parents and I live next door."

His tone was calm, but his jaw was set and his posture was stiff. I couldn't tell if he was angry or scared. Maybe both.

"While that's very admirable." Higgs said in exasperation. "I think you could understand why we might have some concern about that situation."

"No, I don't." Will said, anger winning out.

"We want to provide-"

"Force." I muttered and while Dawley looked annoyed he continued with out comment.

"We want to provide Cali with the most stable situation as possible. And forgive me, what did you say your name was?"

"Will." he said stiffly.

"Well you seem like a smart boy Will. I think you can agree with me that high school relationships aren't the most reliable."

"You said you wanted to provide her with a living situation. I thought you just wanted to talk."

"We came here to ask Cali a few questions about her situation with her father. We already knew it was a poor one, but it's obvious he's abandoned her, in which case it's our job to-"

"He hasn't abandoned me." I said furiously.

"Cali." Higgs started.

"Don't call me that." I said irritated.

"It's been nearly a month." He continued. "Our records indicate he left weeks ago. And every one we've interviewed, his boss, his friends, even the land lord said he hasn't heard from him since. You need to face the reality here. It is more than likely your father is never coming back."

"He wouldn't just leave me." I whispered. Ice was chilling the blood that was creeping through my veins and spreading throughout my body. Suddenly, I felt very small.

"Your relationship with your father was already poor," Dawley said obviously trying to ease my way into some sort of realization. "Sometimes, single parents in his situation. It's too much for them to take."

I felt my knees start to buckle and Will put an arm around my shoulders to steady me.

After all this time, after everything he put me though. He was the one who got to leave?

"Even if he does come back." Dawley continued. "It's obvious his drinking has gotten worse, we've seen the bottles." He said gesturing to my apartment door and I figured they'd let themselves in at one point in time. "This clearly isn't a stable situation."

"Cali." Will said suddenly.

"What?"

{Run.} he muttered in greek.

"Why?"

"What are you saying?" Higgs asked quickly and suddenly the two agents were looking really angry for the first time.

{Do you want to go with them?} Will asked.

"No."

{Then my parents and I will sort it out,} he muttered. {Run.}

I didn't stop to think twice.

"Hey!" the agents shouted as I sprinted down the hall to the staircase but Will held them off.

He was right. They didn't understand. My life was better without my father around and sticking me state system and shipping me off to another foster home taking me away from Max and Will was the opposite of help.

I reached the first floor and tore through the lobby into the evening air.

It was raining, but I didn't stop as my feet carried me automatically to the only place I could think to go.

After about twenty minutes of a panic induced sprint, I made it to a suburban street and ran up the driveway of a light blue house with a bright purple door and several flowers in the garden. Panting, I hammered on the door until I heard a familiar voice say.

"Ok, Ok, jeez I'm coming."

Madison opened the door.

"Cali? What are you doing here?" she asked but then took in my rain drenched disheveled appearance. "Oh my god, what happened to you? Are you ok?"

I couldn't answer right away. I was too busy trying to catch my breath. I leaned my arm on the door frame and bent over still panting. Eventually, I forced myself to look up at her.

"Can I stay here tonight?" I asked.

Wpov

Dave was not happy with my decision to help Cali get away from the CPS agents. I couldn't believe how angry he looked when they dragged me home to my parents. I could still hear his shouts.

 _"Are you an idiot?" he shouted at me while my mother watched silently, apparently unsure what to think. "They could have pressed charges on you, you know! And with your record!"_

 _"They wanted to put in in a foster home!" I shouted back angrily. Dave and I had gotten into disagreements before, but never before had we been in a real argument. This was getting out of hand._

 _"Yeah! That's they're job! And you should have let them!"_

 _"They were going to take her away!"_

 _"They should have Will!" he yelled in exasperation. "That is what Child Protective Services is for! They help kids like Cali!"_

 _"Locking her up with some random foster family isn't going to help Cali." I said fury still coursing through me. He didn't understand. "She'd just run away and come right back. Who knows what would happen to her then? Besides, she can take care of herself!"_

 _"She's sixteen! Use your sense Will, she's practically a child!" he said in a mixture of anger and exasperation. "She can't decide these things for herself! And she shouldn't have to!"_

 _"I'm not going to let them take her away from her brother!" I said furiously._

 _"Not going to let them take her away from her brother, or take her away from you?" he shouted and I felt some of the anger die._

 _My lack of response seemed to calm him, because he sighed and continued at a lower volume._

 _"Will, I know you care about Cali I thought you were smarter than this." He said rubbing his eyes in a tired motion. "You could have gotten both you and Cali into serious trouble. Actually, she is in serious trouble right now. What do you think is going to happen to Cali when they find her? Or even worse, what if she isn't found? Are you really going to let your feelings about her get in the way of what you know is right?"_

 _"But it isn't right." I said softly._

 _"Will. This is their job. It's what they do. Like I said they're there to help kids like Cali."_

 _"But you don't understand." I said in panic. "She's not normal."_

 _"I know. Not many girls are in this situation, or have had to go what she went through. And I know she's your girlfriend but-"_

 _"It has nothing to do with that." I said looking at my mother. "You know what I mean. She's not_ _ **normal**_ _." I said stressing the word._

 _"What?" Dave said looking confused while my mother's eyes went wide._

 _"Will." She said quickly, but I didn't care. I didn't care if Dave found out._

 _"Mom you know what she is. You know what it's like dealing with a kid like us. Do you really think someone like us would make it bouncing around from foster home to home? She needs to be somewhere safe."_

I didn't know what my mother told Dave, but eventually after I'd left them to let them talk in private, she agreed that they would try and do everything they could do to help Cali. I breathed easier from then on, and over the weekend, while I didn't see or hear from Cali, but I willed myself to remain calm. I would know if she was in trouble.

There was one thing I hadn't counted on though, and it was the first thing to hit me when we went back to school on Monday.

"Will!"

I turned to see Max pushing through several people looking distraught, not caring who he offended.

"What happened?" he asked when he reached me.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Cali!" he almost shouted looking as though he were about to cry. "She won't answer any of my calls or texts, and then I found out my Mom called CPS on our Dad and that he's still not back yet. Where is she?"

"I don't know." I said honestly.

"They took her?" he asked looking horrified.

"No," I said. "They tried to but she got away."

He let out a sigh of relief but that almost immediately eclipsed again with worry.

"And you don't know where she went?"

I shook my head.

"She didn't have time to tell me."

"What are we going to do?" he asked running his fingers though his hair anxiously. "Even if she got away now, there's no way they're not going to be looking for her. So, if she did come back, what could we do?"

"Well that's where I might be able to help." I said and he looked up at me with hope.

"How?" he asked quickly.

"There's some sort of law that allows minors 16 and up to live either on their own or with a state approved guardian if CPS is involved."

"Really?" he asked in amazement.

I nodded.

"So, she could potentially stay here?"

"If the courts find her an exceptional case, yeah." I said. "I mean, from what I've read, it's a bit of a long shot. But it's been allowed."

"That's awesome." He said breaking into a smile, but it faded. "but who would she stay with? There's no way in hell my mom would take her, obviously Dad's gone, and I doubt any of her friends have known her long enough for their parents to let her stay with them."

"Well." I said hesitating, not for the first time uncertain if I wanted to tell Max this because he was Cali's brother. "I was thinking she could stay with me."

"Oh." He said and obviously a similar thought was running through his head. Did he want his sister living with her boyfriend?

But then his frown cleared and he smiled.

"That's a great idea!" he said brightly.

"Really?" I asked in surprise.

"Yeah." He said brightly. "Your parents are awesome. And it's not like you'd be sleeping together."

"Yeah." I said a little awkwardly remembering all the nights Cali had stayed with me, but he didn't notice.

"Well let me know if there's anything I can do to help." He said. "And if she contacts you."

"She'll call you first." I said automatically.

"I'm not so sure." He said frowning but then he noticed Amber waving at him and gesturing a little frantically for him to walk over to her. "Look, I've got to go. I'll talk to you later ok?"

"Yeah ok." I said watching him jog over to his girlfriend and was surprised by their expressions when they were talking. It looked pretty serious.

Just then I felt a tap on my shoulder.

I jumped and turned to see Madison standing behind me.

"Oh hey," I started. "Sorry I didn't-"

"Cali was with me this weekend." She said not even bothering to let me finish my sentence.

"Is she alright?" I asked quickly.

"For the most part yeah." She said. "She seemed pretty upset, but she didn't stay long."

"Where is she now?" I asked frowning.

"I don't know, but she wanted me to tell you something." She said looking worried. "She told Amber to tell Max too, she said you guys would know what it meant."

"What did she say?" I asked frowning.

"She said she's going to camp. Though she didn't say which-"

"I know what it means." I said quickly. "Look Madison, I've got to get to a phone." I said quickly looking around hoping one would present itself. "I left mine at home."

"Will hold on." She'd grabbed my arm. "Is Cali going to be alright?"

The way she said it, was something more than just a friend. She kind of reminded me of the way Celeste talked about her sister, and I realized that Madison had truly become Cali's best friend.

"She will be if she gets to camp." I said quietly.

"If?" she asked looking uncertain.

"There's a lot of people who don't want her to get there." I said quietly thinking of all the monsters that must have been between her and Camp Half Blood.

"But she'll be ok right?" she asked.

"Cali's tough." I said not sure if I was reassuring Madison or myself. "She'll be ok."

"Alright." She said looking a little relieved. "And the school has a pay phone in the lobby."

"Thank you." I said. "I'll talk to you later, I'll let you know what I find out."

I ran to the main entrance of the school and scanned the walls. Right in a poorly lit corner on the far side of the hall was a shabby pay phone that looked like I had been there for years.

I quickly jogged over, searched my back pack for quarters, then dialed the camp number.

It was busy.

I swore and hung up the phone thinking desperately.

Well, if I couldn't reach Chiron by phone, there was one other way I could.

Without hesitation I tore off to the science department.

After trying several locked doors, I finally broke down and picked one. I made sure no one was in the room, then quickly went to the storage bins looking for box I knew would be in the with the optics equipment.

"Prisms." I muttered to myself while hearing the warning bell go off. "Prisms, where are you? Finally."

I pulled out a small white box containing several glass ornaments and snagged one.

I rushed to the window and caught a beam of light that threw a rainbow onto one of the desks. I took a gold coin out of my wallet and tossed the drachma into the light.

It vanished.

"Yes." I said feeling a great sense of relief and then recited the offering that would allow me to use an iris message.

The image connected and I saw Chrion look at me in surprise.

"Will? What's up? Are you," he caught my expression. "What's wrong?"


	49. Chapter 49

Cpov

When I made it to camp, I was dirty, my clothes were shredded, and I was exhausted from monster fights. But I'd made it. It might not have been my top choice of places to be but at least here I'd be safe.

The second I'd crossed the border I'd collapsed. Luckily, I was found quickly by Nona who helped me get to the infirmary.

Predictably, she freaked out wondering why I was back at camp and why Will wasn't with me, but I explained the situation after which she left it alone for which I was grateful.

By the morning, I was finally allowed out of the infirmary and I immediately started walking towards the iris cabin, intending to send Will a message when Celeste came sprinting up to me.

"Cali!" she said panting and bending over to catch her breath. "Thank gods I caught you."

"What's up?" I asked curiously. I hoped whatever she needed wouldn't take too long. Will would be starting school soon.

"Chiron received and iris message." She said. "From Will."

I felt a shock go throughout my body.

"Where is he?" I asked quickly.

"He's by the archery fields. You're going to want to hurry." She said. "He said he doesn't have a lot of time."

I nodded and ran in the direction of the fields to see Chiron at the far end of them.

"Chiron!" I shouted and he waved for me to come over.

I jogged over to Chiron who was talking to the shimmering image of Will.

"Cali!" he said running his fingers through his hair in relief. "Oh thank the Gods. You're ok."

"Yeah I'm fine." I said. I didn't realize how much I missed him until I saw him now. "How's Max?" I asked.

I'd been feeling guilty for ignoring his texts and phone calls. But I couldn't have the CPS agents investigating him and knowing that I'd contacted him. Then they wouldn't leave him alone and I'd have to wait even longer to talk to him.

"He's worried about you, Madison is too, but I'll tell them you're ok next time I see them."

"Good." I said.

"Will." Chiron said and I jumped. I'd forgotten he was here. "What's going on? Why has Cali had to come to camp?"

"She kinda needs a place to hide for a bit."

"Why?" he said frowning. "Are there monsters? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. No the people after her are mortals."

"Well this is an effective sanctuary." He muttered. "Well it sounds as if you two have got things under control for now. I'll give you some privacy."

He gave Will one last uncertain look, then walked down the row of archers to continue training some of the younger heroes.

There was a moment where neither of us spoke and we just looked at each other.

"Is it weird that I miss you already?" he asked and I smiled.

"I was just thinking the same thing."

"You know we're going to figure this out right?" he asked. "I'll tell your teachers your sick or something, and spring break is next week. So I'll come meet you at camp and we can figure something out."

"Alright." I said.

There was a sound on his end of the message.

"Shit." He swore. "Someone's coming in, I've got to go. Love you."

"Love you too." I said and the message vanished.

I stared after it for a second, then looked around the fields.

Camp was a lot different when most of kids were back at school. I'd never been here when I wasn't on some sort of break. While there were some people who stayed here full time, it seemed kind of empty.

"Hey."

I turned and saw Celeste walking up to me.

"Hey." I said and she hesitated before saying.

"I'm sorry you had to leave home. And about your Dad."

"It wasn't much of a home." I said shrugging. "He wasn't much of a Dad."

"Yeah, but at least you had Will. And your brother."

"I still have them." I said.

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah I know." I said and I smiled at her. "But here I have you."

She smiled too.

"Well I was just about to go help out in the stables if you wanted to go with me, and later I was going to play some of the other cabin heads in volleyball if you wanted to play."

"Yeah. I think I will." I said and her smile grew.

We walked in the direction of stables each wrapped up in our own thoughts until she said.

"You know I'm really glad you started dating Will." She said not looking at me, but straight a head.

"Why?" I asked. Though I thought I knew the answer. Our cabin approved of attractive significant others, but as it turned out, I was wrong.

"Because I know he really cares about you." She said. "Not many guys get you, but he does. And I think this is the first time I've ever seen you actually happy."

Wpov

I'm not going to lie, spending a week without Cali was weird. Before she was gone, it seemed like she was always around but without her things seemed oddly dull.

Anytime I had a funny thought or a joke I wanted to tell, I got ready to look down and see her, or text it too her but I couldn't. I'd gotten so used to walking her to class, I'd automatically started going to her classes before remembering she wasn't going to be there. Madison had caught me a few times wandering the halls, and had reminded me to go straight to my class. Walks to and from school felt lonely now, but the worst part was trying to sleep. I'd gotten so used to her presence every night, that now I found it hard to sleep without her. I didn't know what it was, but there was just something comforting about hearing her breathing next to me, or feeling her against me, but the best was waking up next to her. Now that all of that was gone, something just felt off.

Friday finally came, and while I'd wanted to go straight to camp, some of my friends had convinced me to go to the dance with them. I'd asked Cali over iris message and she'd been fine with it, but now that I was here, I really wished I hadn't come. Seeing the whole school here with their dates and laughing with their friends, just made me miss her so much more, and I didn't feel like being an awkward fifth wheel around Chris and Madison and Max and Amber. I didn't feel like being around any of my other friends either. All they would do was ask where Cali was.

The gym was decorated in a 'Vegas Lights' theme with gold and silver balloons as well as elaborate black streamers, but I hardly noticed the transformation. I just wanted to see Cali.

"God Will will you cheer up?" Sadie said dropping into the seat next to mine at a table far removed from the section of the gym that was designated as dance floor. "Your expression is downright depressing."

Madison had finally caught her up to speed on what was going on with Cali a few days ago, but they'd already paid for her ticket to come, so she and I came to the dance together. She seemed like she was having a good time. Several boys had been talking to her but apparently she'd had enough because she'd come to sit with me.

"What do you want?" I asked her suspiciously.

Things between Sadie and I were a little weird. She seemed perfectly content to pretend like our date had never happened, she was perfectly friendly to Cali, and acted like we were and had never been anything more than friends. But sometimes I still got a weird vibe from her. Not that she liked me anymore, actually quite the opposite. Like maybe she was still mad.

"I came to talk to you since I don't know very many people here and you're refusing to talk to your friends."

"Why would you want to talk to me?"

She sighed in an annoyed way.

"You know at first I didn't get why you and Cali work so well together." She said giving me a strange look. "But the more I spent time around you guys, the more I see how in some ways you guys are different, but you seem to think exactly the same."

"Max says that a lot." I muttered glancing at him as he and Amber danced awkwardly to a slow song. They were both blushing.

"Because it's true." She said and I looked at her.

She looked very pretty with her long blonde hair pulled back into an elegant up do with lots of curls and glittering bobby pins. Her dress was a hot pink with lots of rhinestones and I almost grinned as I pictured Cali's expression if she'd been asked to wear it, but Sadie wore it well.

"You know I don't really think you understand how similar some of the stuff you guys say are. You've got everything going for you, and yet you still seem to think the world is out to get you."

'That's because it is.' I thought drily. Halfbloods were part God, a being that was not supposed to live in the mortal world. So we were literally born with half our DNA being rejected by the life we were forced into, and it threw everything it could at us to get us away.

"It's like you constantly expect everyone to be on attack." She said taking a sip of the punch she'd brought over while sliding me a cup. I took it. "I don't get it." She said and I took a sip for something to do more than anything. "What's happened to you guys that made you this way? So paranoid about life that she, and you, both thought that there was no way that I could be friends with you guys?"

"Well we-"

"Had a bad date." She said shrugging. "So what? Just because we're not right as a couple doesn't mean we can't be friends. Cali doesn't have a problem with it."

"I wasn't worried about her." I muttered.

"See this is what I mean." She said shaking her head. "Why do you think it would be so hard for me to be friends with you? Homecoming was ages ago. You know, not everyone you have an issue with is going to hold a grudge against you forever. Or you can just talk it out. But you and Cali." She paused. "It's like you want to avoid anyone or anything that could ever cause you a problem or hurt."

"Things tend to go bad for us." I said stubbornly.

"You make yourselves sound different all the time. Madison and Max talk about it, I've heard them. Like you're not normal or something like the rest of us." She gave me a sideways glance. "Is that true?"

"Are you asking if I think we're different?"

"I think you are different." She said. "I just don't know how. Maybe that's what I'm asking."

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." I said and she looked at me with narrowed eyes.

I guess she decided to drop it though because eventually she shrugged and said.

"Who knows, maybe you're right. But either way, I guess it's lucky you guys found each other."

"Yeah." I said which felt like a bold face lie. "It is lucky."

She smiled, then stood up and extended her hand.

I stared at her blankly.

"Well?" she said. "Are you going to dance with me or not?"

"I don't think Cali would-" I said trying to think up an excuse but she cut me off.

"Cali's not going to care." She said rolling her eyes. "Why would she tell you to go to a dance and expect you just to sit around moping the whole time?" She asked. "I'm sure she wants you to have fun."

I grinned and took her hand.

"Alright. One dance."

"Don't worry so much about your girlfriend. You're allowed to have a life too."

That wasn't exactly true strictly speaking, but there was no way I could explain about my situation without sounding like a complete raving lunatic so I let her drag me out onto the dance floor where we met up with Chris and Madison as the DJ put on an extremely popular but dorky song that told you how to dance to it in the lyrics.

While Cali never left my mind, I believed Sadie was right. Cali would have wanted me to have fun tonight, so when the dance ended I didn't sit back down. I went around to see my other friends, explaining that Cali was sick, and trying to find a boy that I thought might get along with Sadie.

I was surprised how quickly my mood improved and as the dance, I found that I was actually having a good time.

"See." Sadie said a few hours later when we walked back to the apartment building together. "You can have fun without your girlfriend."

"Yeah you were right." I said grinning and she smiled.

She was holding her heels and I knew her feet were probably sore. Once she'd gotten me out of my bad mood we hadn't sat back down until the dance ended and we'd walked back home.

"I know you miss her, but you'll see her tomorrow right?"

"Yeah. Thanks for cheering me up." I said. "I needed it."

"That what friends are for." She said shrugging.

"You're a good friend." I said.

"I know right?" she asked in a cheerful tone. "I'm kind of awesome."

There was an awkward pause where neither of us seemed to know what to say.

"Well I'm going to head upstairs." She said gesturing towards the second floor. "I'll see you around. You guys will be back form camp in like a week right?"

"I will." I said. "I'm not sure about Cali yet."

"She'll be home soon." She said with a comforting smile and taking my hand. "Don't worry. She'll be back with you before you know it."

"How can you say that?" I asked quietly. "You act as if you know."

"Because unlike you two." She started with an amused smile. "I don't think the world is out to get me. People always end up back where they belong. And for Cali, that's with you."

I didn't know what it was, but as she said it, I felt something inside me break. The next thing I knew I'd pulled her into a hug.

"Oh, ok I guess we're doing this." She said and awkwardly patted my back.

"Thank you Sadie." I said quietly.

"No problem." She said relaxing slightly and returning the hug. "Don't worry so much. Cali will be home soon."


	50. Chapter 50

Alright, last one for the night. I really can't believe how far this story has gotten. Thanks for all the support, it really means a lot. I hope you enjoy the chapter!

~Secrethalfblood

...

Cpov

Being the daughter of a Greek Goddess, Christmas wasn't really a huge part of my childhood. We really only celebrated for Max growing up, but when Saturday rolled around and I knew Will would be coming to camp I had to admit, I finally knew what it meant to feel like a kid on Christmas.

Any time I passed the camp boundaries I looked for him. I found myself walking passed the Hermes cabin much more often than I would have normally. But none of that seemed to matter, he still found me first.

I'd been walking into the dining pavilion with Celeste when I felt someone hug me from behind and lift me into the air.

"Will." I said laughing when he set me down and turning to face him.

"Hey Cal." He said with a huge grin and Celeste smiled.

"I'll see you later Cali." She said knowingly.

Amorette, who evidently had just arrived as well, gave us a dirty look but said nothing as she went into the pavilion.

"How much would I have to bribe you to bring a portable lunch to come to the beach with me?" he asked.

"Not much." I said with a smile.

"Excellent." He said grabbing my hand and dragging me towards the food. "Let's go then."

After we'd grabbed an armful of fruit and granola bars, we made our offerings and left the dining area to walk together towards the beach.

He filled me in on all the things I'd missed in school, the dance, his conversation with Sadie, and how Max and Amber had had their first fight but were still together. Chris and Madison had gotten together at the dance, and had apparently been reprimanded several times for excessive PDA.

"I wish I'd been there." I said regretfully. I hated having to hear everything second hand.

"I know." He said squeezing my hand. "But you'll be home soon. My Mom made an appointment to speak with a social worker. If they let you, she says you can stay with us."

"Really?" I asked turning up to him.

He nodded.

"That's so nice of your parents." I said quietly.

"Yeah," he said as we hit the sand and started walking along the water. "They're being pretty cool about it."

"Even Dave?" I asked nervously as we sat down on the sand and a gust of wind pick up the sea spray, coating us with mist.

"He's the one who insisted we do it." He said. "He wants you to finish high school."

"Guess it runs in the family." I said and he grinned. "So how long is this all going to take?"

"Well usually it takes months." He said and I felt my heart sink. "But I figure with my mom's unnatural ability to push people into doing what she wants and a little blast of charm speak, it shouldn't be that difficult."

"Yeah probably not." I said quietly watching the waves sink into the sand over and over again as they crashed on to the shore and he gave me a concerned look.

"You ok Cal?"

"Yeah." I said. "It's just weird, you know?"

"What is?"

"Having people that care so much." I looked at him. "Madison and Sadie have called me about a hundred times, Max probably more than that. And now you and your parents…"

His fingers laced with mine but for once he didn't offer words of wisdom or comfort. I think he like me knew that there wasn't anything to say. He let me lean my head on his shoulder and as I closed my eyes, I felt him kiss my forehead.

I remembered back all those months ago when Will's parents had let me stay for dinner, and I'd stormed out telling him that I couldn't have a family. But as I thought of Max, my friends, and Will and his parents, I was starting to see that I could.

My whole life I'd been so angry at the idea of family. I hated my father, was abandoned by my mother and just trying to spend time with Max had always been so difficult but now, I saw that the family you were born into mattered very little. It was about the people who you chose to let into your life and who deserved to be there. It didn't matter that my parents had left me on my own, I didn't need them. I had Max, and my friends, and I had Will and his parents. I was starting to realize that maybe that's all I really needed.

Wpov

Camp went by about as uneventfully as camp could. Only a few curses were called down, one person was stabbed outside of capture the flag, and most of the new demigods made it through the boundary in one piece. Spending Spring Break with Cali was amazing, but we faced a much harsher reality when we returned to the mortal world.

As we'd been picked up from camp, my mother explained that in order for her and Dave to make a legal claim for guardianship over Cali, she first had to be officially turned over to the state.

That had not gone down well Cali.

The second she saw the social worker at the camp boundary she'd tried to run for it. I'd managed to grab her in time and after several minutes of kicking and screaming in a mix of languages, surprisingly it was my mother who was able to get her to calm down.

After another twenty minutes of discussion, she managed to convince Cali to get in the car with social worker who'd be taking her to a shelter that housed other wards of the state. I'll never forget the look Cali had given me from the back seat as the car pulled away. Her eyes turquoise with worry and her expression clear.

'Are you sure you know what you're doing?'

To be honest, I wasn't sure. I'd never been less certain of something in my life. I didn't speak on the ride home unable to get Cali's expression out of my mind, and the second I got home, I started researching obsessively the state codes that might apply to her case. The more I read, the worse I felt.

The number of cases where teens had been emancipated from their parents was small enough, and even they were generally released to the custody of relatives. In the eyes of the law, my parents were practically strangers to her, and it didn't help that Cali wasn't exactly a model case. She had a record, a reputation for causing trouble, and was known for running from foster homes. Nothing I read assured me that we'd be able to help her. What if we wouldn't be allowed to keep her? These cases were all complicated and there didn't seem to be any clear indicator of which way the judge would lean. Had we put Cali through all this for no reason? What if it didn't work?

"Don't look so worried Will." Dave said attaching his guest pass as we walked through the shabby, dimly lit hall. "I'm sure she's fine."

It had been four days since we'd left camp and this was the first day we'd been allowed to visit Cali at the shelter. My mother had gone to talk to the official in charge of Cali's case, while Dave and I made our way to the common area where visits took place.

We stepped through a set of rusting green metal doors and stepped into a cold room with white tiled floors, bare florescent lights, a dilapidated couch in front of a box TV, and tables surrounded by mismatched plastic chairs.

There were a few kids talking to adults at the table, but for the most part it was a sea of rough looking kids of varying ages, talking to each other obviously not expecting anyone to show up. The second we stepped through the door however, the noise dimmed as heads in turned curiously in our direction, all of them obviously wondering the same thing. Who were we here for?

"Good god." Dave said appalled looking at the small book shelf which was covered in battered and vandalized books, but I ignored him scanning the room.

I felt my heart fail when I spotted a small figure, dressed in the same white long sleeve and gray sweat pants all the other kids in here were wearing. Cali was sitting alone on a window sill, her knees hugged to her chest, staring at the building next to the shelter. She didn't turn around at first, but when the silence dragged on she looked curiously over shoulder and as always when her eyes met mine the world seemed to fall away.

I wasn't exactly aware of her running to me, or picking her up as my arms locked around her. All I knew was that this moment could last for an eternity and it wouldn't have been long enough. It was too long for the shift councilor however, who'd been in charge of the room and reminded me none to kindly that it was against the rule for visitors to touch the residents.

I wanted to tell him I didn't really give a damn what he thought, but knew better. The last thing I needed was to be barred from the visitors list.

Instead we followed Dave to one of the tables, people whispering as we passed and from what I could hear, they were all in shock that the quiet new girl had a boyfriend. Part of me wondered if she'd said a word since she got here. We sat on opposite sides in accordance with the rules, Cali in view of the staff, while Dave and I sat across from her and I took in her appearance.

Her eyes were bright blue, and for some reason she looked younger than she normally did. She seemed happy to see us, but I was worried. She looked exhausted and a dark bruise shadowed her cheek. It looked painful.

"What happened to you?" Dave asked quietly while I felt my hands clench into fists.

"What?" she asked looking confused.

"You're face." I said darkly. "It looks like you've been slugged."

"Oh." She said shrugging. "Quarter back over there thought it'd be funny to try and sneak into my bed my first night here."

She nodded towards a tall boy with dirty blond hair and a neck brace as well as a cast around his arm as well as a second brace around his knee.

"They say I probably ruined his chances for a scholar ship." She said mildly and I felt rage shoot through me. "That's why I haven't been able to call. They took away my phone privileges after the fight."

"Because you defended yourself after he tried to assault you?" I asked furiously making to stand but Dave gripped my shoulder.

"You're not helping." He muttered then turned back to Cali as I ground my teeth in frustration. "Why do you look like you haven't slept?"

"Some girl snuck a knife into her room from the cafeteria last night and they saw it during their night checks." She said dully. "The whole wing had to be searched. They didn't finish until about two hours before we were supposed to wake up."

"And they still made you get up?" he asked horrified.

"They like consistency." Cali said with another shrug. "All these places are like this. They don't like to break routine."

She said it unconcernedly, as if this were a fact of no real importance but I saw Dave frown. I didn't know what was worse, the things she was saying or how casually she'd said it.

"Well, we brought you a present." He said with an air of trying to keep a dismal situation as light as possible. "I was afraid that they might have already had it here seeing as it's a classic but…" he glanced at the travesty of a bookshelf. "I guess that was optimism at it's finest."

He reached into the plastic bag he'd been carrying and handing her a copy of _Pride and Prejudice_ and Cali's expression brightened. Something that was surprising, but then again not so surprising about Cali, was that she actually liked romance novels. I mean, considering who her mother was I guess that wasn't that big of a shock, but still, this was a girl who considered monster fighting a form of entertainment. The first time I'd seen her curled up on the couch reading the _Notebook_ , I had to do a double take, then it took everything in my power not to laugh.

"Thank you." She said surprised but accepting the book all the same.

She asked about what was going on in school and I told her everything she'd missed. Max and Amber had gotten into another fight, no doubt from his mood about Cali's situation, but they'd gotten over it. Chris had all but been confirmed as valedictorian for our graduation and Madison had gotten the lead in the spring musical. I'd just promised to get her work from her teachers and bring it the next time I visited when my mother stepped through the door and beamed at Cali.

"Look who I ran into." She said cheerfully as Max stepped through the door after her looking around the room uncertainly, but smiling when he saw his sister.

"Hey Cal." He said laughing as she tackled him into a hug.

"Parker!" the councilor said irritated and she let him go.

More people whispered, apparently amazed at the number of visitors the new girls had accrued and indeed it was a little crowded on the visitor's side of the table.

"What happened to your face?" Max said frowning.

"Long story." She muttered obviously not wanting to admit to her little brother what had happened, but his eyes landed on the battered football player and he seemed to make the connection.

"How long does she have to be here?" he asked looking at me but my mother was the one who responded.

"I just talked to Cali's case worker." She said. "She said it could be a few days or take up to two or three more weeks depending on what priority the judge assigned her case."

"So she's stuck here?" he asked glancing at her cheek.

"I'll be fine Max." she said quietly and he made an irritated noise.

"Yeah, that's what you always say. Have you taken a look around Cali? Do you see where you are?"

"Unfortunately, waiting is all we can do." Dave said before Cali had the chance to retort.

"What do you think about all this?" Max asked looking at me.

"I hate this." I said honestly glancing at Cali, then back at Max as a war raged inside me. I was constantly conflicted recently, trying to separate what I wanted from what I knew was right. I wanted to take Cali's hand and drag her out of this hell hole. I wanted to take her home, never look back and tell anyone who had a problem with it they could deal with me, but I knew that would do nothing but make her situation worse. "But we need to do what's best for Cali." I continued quietly. "She can't spend all of high school running from the state. We've just got to wait."

I felt Dave put a hand on my shoulder in what felt like pride, but I was looking at Cali whose expression was difficult to read but her eyes were not. They were dark blue, like the ocean under moon light, and it reminded me of the nights at camp where we'd walked on the beach together totally alone. I wanted to know what she was thinking but knew better than to ask, something about this particular color felt private.

We stayed until the end of visiting hours where she blatantly ignored the no contact rule and hugged each of us in turn.

"We're going to get you out of here." I said quietly as I released her.

"I know." She said with a nod.

"And when we get home we can watch all the terrible romance movies you want."

I expected her to laugh or roll her eyes and say something smart back, but she didn't. She simply looked at me her eyes still dark and to my surprise, she grabbed my shirt, pulled my down to her and kissed me.

"PARKER!"

"Yeah, I know." She said with a sigh as we broke apart and taking her book off the table. "I'm going."

People were snickering as she walked towards a door labeled 'Quiet Room'.

She hesitated as the councilor crossed the room in her direction looking irate. She looked over and gave me a slight smile with a meaning that was clear.

"Worth it." She said.

For the first time in days, I felt a genuine smile appear on my face.

She rolled her eyes but stepped into the room as the councilor held open the door, then locked it behind her.

Dave made a noise between incredulity and exasperation, where as my mother simply looked amused. Max however was wearing a strange expression. He was looking after the door then look back at me.

"She's got you totally whipped, doesn't she?" he asked as we walked, several steps behind my parents, out of the visiting area and back into the hall.

Most guys probably would have tried to defend themselves, but the thought didn't occur to me.

"Yeah." I said rubbing the back of my head trying to force my brain to work properly. It had a tendency to shut down after she kissed me and it was slow to restart.

"Well, at least you admit it." he said rolling his eyes but like my mother he sounded amused. "I guess any guy would be."

He put his hands in his jeans pocket and gave me a conflicted look.

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just," he frowned apparently struggling with whatever it was. "You really love her, don't you?"

I looked at him, trying to gauge his expression. I know Max had been ecstatic when he learned about my relationship with Cali, but he was her brother after all.

"Are you sure you want to talk about this?" I asked him raising an eyebrow.

"We're going to have to do it at some point." He said shrugging. "I figure you're going to be around for a while. So?" he finished looking up at me expectantly.

"Yes." I said as we stepped out of the building. "I love your sister."

It was a cool but sunny day. My parents had reached our car in the lot and I saw that Max's mother was waiting by the curb in her car, obviously having just arrived.

"I thought so." He said frowning but ignoring his mother when she honked the horn and looking up at me again. "But like how much?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like on a scale of asking her to prom to asking her to marry you? How much do you love her?"

I hesitated but he seemed to read the answer in my expression.

"I see." He said frowning looking conflicted with this information but eventually he shrugged and made his way towards his mother's car, but not before saying. "Well, at least I know."


	51. Chapter 51

Cpov

I never thought I would say this, but when my paperwork was finally sorted, it was a relief to be going back to school. Being cooped in the shelter was driving me nuts and I felt if I had to spend another day sitting there doing nothing I was going to scream or hurt someone. Probably both.

I'd been allowed to change into some of my own clothes that Will's mother had dropped off for me for school, and I sat with the other high school students waiting for the bus to take us each our individual schools.

Some of them were talking, competing with stories about whose life was more messed up, while others were like me and kept to themselves.

"A cigarette burn? That's all?" one of the boys asked Kelly, a girl that was assigned to my room, while snickering. "That's what I got if I was lucky. Are sure you belong here?"

"Shut up Zach." she snapped covering the burns on her arms. She had short red hair and green eyes that were looking at him resentfully. "But I guess I'd do meth too if I looked like you."

"Low blow Kel," he said but far from looking upset, he smirked. He did look a little messed up, he had a drug problem and I could only assume one day when he was high, he'd let what seemed like a very poor tattoo artist attack his face.

"Why are you here Parker?" he asked turning towards me curiously and I saw several heads turn in my direction, also interested. Everyone knew everyone else's story here but I'd long since decided just to keep my mouth shut while I remained in my current situation. Nothing I was thinking would help my 'newly reformed troublemaker' image I was supposed to be portraying to prove to the state that I wasn't a flight risk. The fight was bad enough, and I was just determined to keep my head down so as not to attract any more attention.

"Don't be shy," Ryan, a tall skinny boy with green Mohawk and heterochromia, said also smirking. "You can tell us."

Ignored them and turned a page in the book Dave had given me, determined not to say anything.

"Don't bother. You know she's not going to talk." Beatrice said sitting on the bench next to me. She had dark brown hair and black eyes that were made darker by aggressive eye make up. She had several piercings and was actually quite pretty, if she didn't look like she was considering burning your house down. She looked at me with interest. "Gonna put anyone else in the hospital today?"

She too was assigned to the same room as I was and had been there when I'd beaten the crap out of Harrison.

"Well whatever it is it must be bad." Zach said his light eyes glittering with a cruel amusement.

I turned another page and was surprised when something slipped from the book and fell into my lap.

I smiled when I realized what it was. I picked up the photo of Will and I and realized with a slight laugh that it was a picture of Thanksgiving where I'd fallen asleep on him during the movie.

Taped to the back was a note that was obviously written by Will

Seems like forever ago doesn't it?

Try not to worry too much, you'll be home soon

Then you can sleep on me as much as you want

I really Miss you cal

I love you

"That's sweet." Beatrice said, obviously reading over my shoulder looking at the picture. "He's really hot you know, your boyfriend. What's someone like him doing dating a shelter kid?"

Her attention was distracted from me however, as Kelly launched herself at Zach who'd gone back to teasing her. The two started to fight, and were quickly separated by staff members, then were dragged back to the shelter.

Several people snickered and immediately started gossiping about fight but I went back to my book. The bus couldn't come fast enough in my opinion.

When it finally rolled up and I found myself sitting next to Beatrice again in the packed rows of seats. She was filing a broken piece of plastic meal tray she found into a lethal point. Some people might have thought she was insane but I was a pretty good judge of character and I didn't think she'd actually hurt anyone. I think she just liked sharp things.

"So why won't you talk to us?" she asked, testing the point with the pad of her index finger. A drop of blood beaded around the tip and she put it in her back pack seeming satisfied, then she looked at me. "We're not all bad." She continued. "I mean, normally I'd think you're just a total bitch but you're locked up here with the rest of us." She shrugged. "So I really doubt you think you're better than any of us."

"You remind me of my friend Madison." I said looking out the window as the bus trundled onto the highway. She had the same kind of blatant honesty that came from genuinely not caring what anyone thought of her.

"Don't wanna make friends here?" she asked shrewdly looking around at others.

"I just don't have anything to say." I said shrugging.

"We don't have to talk about why you're here if you don't want." She said and I glanced at her. She was looking at me with interest and she seemed sincere. "What's your boyfriend's name?"

"Will."

"He seems nice." She said plucking the picture out of the book which I'd been using a place holder and looking at it. "Though I thought it looked like he wanted to kick Harrison's ass when he came to visit. Not that you need any help with that." She said giving me a grin. "How'd you guys meet?"

"He lives next to me."

"So he literally fell for the girl next door? That's cute." She said amused handing me back the photo.

"You have a boyfriend?" I asked.

"Nah." She said with a dry smile. "No one wants to date the psycho girl who like to play with knives."

"You'd be surprised." I said letting one of my draggers transform and grinning at her reaction.

"Where have you been hiding that?" she asked her eyes wide and I let her inspect the dagger for a moment.

"That's my business."

"Not as innocent as you look huh?" she asked looking at me with a smirk of approval.

"Never have been." I said amused.

As the ride continued we talked about various things, court dates and where we thought we'd end up, but eventually ended up on the topic of the boy she had a crush on though refused to tell me his name. Eventually, after several stops to various schools we reached mine.

"I guess I'll see you tonight." Beatrice said as I put my book back in my bag and zipped it up.

"Yeah. He thinks you're cute by the way." I said standing and looking down at her. "Ryan I mean."

She blushed.

"How did you-" she started her eyes going wide.

"I'm good at this sort of thing." I said grinning at her and making my way towards the front of the bus.

I stepped off and on to the sidewalk surprised when people waved to me, saying they were glad I felt better. After this had happened five or six times, it occurred to me that Will must have explained my absence with some sort of illness. I nodded a little awkwardly and made my way into the building. I couldn't believe how many people seemed genuinely happy to see me back.

I walked into the main entrance of the school, and smiled when I spotted Will talking to Chris and some of his track team mates, but I was prevented from walking towards him as someone shouted.

"CALLISTA PARKER I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"Madison, what the hell?" I asked, holding my arms up in self defense as she repeatedly smacked me with her pencil case.

"You." She said furiously, her eyes narrowing but lowering her voice so that the people around us couldn't hear. "First you turn up at my house all messed up, telling me you'd run away and that you had to disappear for a while, then you do disappear and Will's lying to everyone saying that your sick and can't come to school. Then break ends and I found out you've been locked up in some sort of youth shelter from Amber after she argued with Max! Not once did you think to call me!"

"I wasn't allowed to use the phone." I said honestly.

"Still!" she said angrily. "I'm your best friend! You should have done something! And why are you smiling at me like that?" she asked when I grinned. "I'm mad at you, you should be cowering in fear."

"You've never said that before."

"Said what?" she asked still looking irritated.

"That I was your best friend."

She gave me a blank look for a moment, then made an exasperated noise and rolling her eyes.

"God you're such an idiot." She muttered pulling me into hug. "Of course I'm your best friend dummy."

"Missed you too." I said and we broke apart.

"So what's going to happen to you?" she asked giving me a concerned look, while linking her arm with mine as we made our way towards Will and Chris.

I shrugged and she scowled.

"You know you can tell me Cal." She said and I realized she was only the third person to ever call me that.

"I really don't know." I said honestly. "Will's parents are trying to petition the state so I can stay with them, but nothing's set in stone."

She frowned.

"What happens if it doesn't work?"

"Foster home probably."

"So you'll have to move?" she asked and she looked sad.

"No. I don't care what they say I'm not going to go." I said shaking my head. I already decided that long ago.

"Where else would you go?"

I shrugged again. I hadn't exactly figured that out yet, what I was going to do if they tried to take me away. Maybe I'd end up back at camp but I didn't much feel like putting life on hold until I was too old to stay there.

She looked as if she wanted to ask something else but didn't get the chance as we'd reached the boys.

"I come baring gifts." She said looking at Will with a smirk who broke from his conversation and looked at me.

"Hey." He said grinning. "Welcome back."

"It's good to be back." I said honestly.

"Good to see you're alive." Chris said looking down at me as Will put an arm around my waist. "How are you?"

By his tone I knew either Madison or Will had told him the truth about where I had been.

"Ok." I said honestly. I'd been pretty miserable this morning but talking to Beatrice had cheered me up as well as seeing Madison and Will again.

"Any updates?" Will asked me and both Chris and Madison looked at me as well.

"Still in limbo." I said with a sigh. "They keep saying a few more days, but that's code for 'we don't know shit.'"

"I'm sorry." He said quietly.

"Yeah me too, but there's nothing we can do about it."

"Still," he said frowning as Chris and Madison started talking about plans they'd made for this weekend. "I hate not knowing how long this is going to take. I miss you being around."

"Me too." I said honestly.

"Are things at least getting better?" he asked still looking concerned. "No one's bothering you anymore are they?"

"Yeah, for the most part people just leave me alone."

"Scared of you?" he asked grinning and I shrugged.

"Not really, fights happen a lot. I just don't really talk. I did make friends with one girl though this morning. She was pretty nice." I looked at Madison. "I think you'd like her."

"I think I've reached the limit on delinquent best friends." She said amused.

"We should probably get going Will." Chris said looking at his watch. "We've got less than five minutes before we're supposed to check in."

"Alright." He sounding disappointed.

"Where are you going?" I asked looking up at him as Chris kissed Madison goodbye.

"Seniors are supposed to go to the auditorium during first period today. Rehearsal for graduation."

"Sounds important."

"No, it sounds boring." He said scowling. "I'd much rather be with you."

I smiled and his mood seemed to improve slightly.

"I'll see you at lunch ok?" he asked.

I nodded and he too kissed me goodbye.

Madison linked her arm with mine again as we watched the boys make their way to the auditorium and we started to walk to class.

"So I have something I wanted to ask you." She said as we exited the entrance and made our way into the main part of the school.

"What is it?"

"Well before I ask, you gotta promise to let me finish before you say anything."

"Where is this headed?" I asked looking at her suspiciously.

"Just promise." She said in exasperation.

"Alright." She said with a grin. "So I know you don't like attention, but I just wanted you to consider something. One of the girls in the play just found out her Mom's being transferred to a Navy base overseas and her family's got to move. She doesn't have an understudy and we're holding auditions for her spot. I think you should try out."

"Why?" I asked in confusion. "I can't act."

That was much more of a 'child of Dionysus' trait than it was 'child of Aphrodite'.

"You're kidding right?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"No." I said frowning.

"Cali." She said as if I were being stupid. "You could tell a penguin it could fly and it would believe you. You've got the best poker face of anyone I've ever seen. All the teachers believe you when you tell them a story."

"That's lying. Not acting." I said skeptically.

"Don't you think you need to be good at acting to get people to believe a lie?"

I'd never thought of it like that before. Granted, a lot of my ability to convince people of things was my charmspeak, but she didn't know that.

"Just think about it." she said before I could think of anything to respond. "Auditions are next week, you can decide then."

"Alright." I agreed then let out a dry laugh. "If I'm even still here next week."

Madison had a dark sense of humor, and I expected her to laugh too, but she didn't.

"Don't say that Cal." She said gloomily. "Everyone really wants you to come home."

She departed for chemistry while I walked to bio thinking about her offer.

She was right of course, I didn't like a lot of attention, but I'd spent time with the people from the drama department. They were a pretty cool group, and the more I thought on the idea the more I liked it.

"What do you think?" I asked Will at lunch as we waiting in the food line.

"About the play?" he asked and I nodded. "It doesn't really matter what I think. It's up to you."

"She thinks I'd be good at acting."

"Well you did manage to cry me out of getting kicked off varsity." He mused while grabbing a tray with pizza on it. "And you didn't even like me back then. Gods know what else you've made other people believe."

"Gee thanks." I said frowning at him and he grinned.

"It's not my fault you're a good liar. That one's on you."

I guess he had a point.

We walked to the table where Chris and Madison were sitting next to each other obviously waiting for us.

"So? Made up your mind yet?" she asked eagerly when she spotted me.

"Yeah. I think I'm gonna do it." I said and she squealed with excitement. Something that was unusual for her.

"Great!" she said happily as Will and I sat at the table. "I'll get you a copy of the script tomorrow!"

She went on to explain about rehearsals and tips she found helpful for auditions, but when I glanced at Chris I saw him frowning and I knew he was thinking the same thing. Madison's excitement was all well and good, but no matter how happy she was, it didn't change the fact no one knew what was going to happen to me.

I think Will was thinking about it too because suddenly I felt his hand in mine under the table.

We let Madison ramble until the bell rang and the boys walked us to French.

"You coming tonight?" I asked Will, adjusting the strap on my book bag and looking up at him. Visitors were allowed to come today.

"Of course." He said grinning. "And we're bringing Max, although I think Dave might have an aneurysm if he sees that bookshelf again."

I laughed and he kissed me on the cheek.

"I'll see you tonight Cal."

"See you." I said smiling and following Madison into the classroom.

Despite how little I wanted to go back to the shelter, I was looking forward to seeing Beatrice. All day I'd been thinking about it, and I was excited to start working on setting her up with Ryan, I thought I might introduce her to Will when he visited too.

She wasn't on the bus when it picked me up from school, but I didn't get worried until I made it back to the shelter and she still wasn't there. I checked our room but her things were gone, and she didn't show up during our homework hour either. By rec time I was getting really worried. While the girls and boys weren't really supposed to interact much, I cornered Ryan as he went to get a deck of cards from the supply closet.

"Hey." I said knowing the boys he hung out with here, including Zach, were all looking at me from the tables.

"So you do talk." He said grinning and looking down at me with interest.

"Yeah, where's Beatrice?" I asked. They went to the same school and I figured if anyone knew what had happened to her he might.

"Probably half way to Texas by now." He said his smile fading. He looked disappointed.

"What? Why?" I asked confused.

"Her case finally went through this morning. They shipped her off to a foster family."

"But I thought her aunt was going to take her." I said frowning. "That's what she told me this morning."

"Yeah that's what we thought too." He said shrugging. "But the judge changed his mind at the last second I guess. You never know with these things Parker. Odds are it's going to happen to you too."

I felt my insides go cold and a sudden pressure close in around my heart as a strange sort of rushing filled my ears.

"Sorry." He said guiltily when he caught my expression. "I probably shouldn't have said that. She told me you were hoping to live with your boyfriend."

"So you don't think it's going to happen?" I muttered looking down.

"Honestly? No." he said and another wave of cold washed over me leaving me dizzy. When I looked up at him he was shaking his head. "You seem like an alright person, I mean, you'd have to be if B liked you, but the people in charge of us, they don't really care about that much. I know it sucks but it's the truth."

I didn't respond and he seemed to grapple with something for a moment before he asked.

"That boyfriend of yours coming tonight?"

I nodded.

"I'm sorry Parker, but if I were you." He started his tone not unkind but realistic all the same. "I would start thinking of ways to say goodbye."


	52. Chapter 52

Wpov

In the end, it took ten more days until Cali's case went before a judge. In those ten days I didn't see her much, but I told myself it would be worth it when she'd be allowed to come live with us. I'd said it to myself so many times I'd almost convinced myself of it. I was sure that when her court date came I would feel relief, but now that the day was here I was terrified.

It didn't help that in the time she'd been there, several kids had come and gone from the shelter, and from what it sounded like, all of them had been sent to foster homes. I tried not to think about it. I tried telling myself that Cali's case was different, but in the end the circumstances mattered very little. It was up to the judge.

"It'll be fine." I said not sure who I was reassuring, squeezing Cali's hand as we waited in the court house and feeling like I was going to sweat through my suit.

We were both dressed in our best trying to make a good impression on the judge, but we'd been asked to leave the room while she talked to the social worker Cali had been assigned and my parents. A few feet away, a staff member of the shelter was standing keeping an eye on Cali, but we were ignoring him.

"She hates me." Cali said quietly looking at the floor. She was in a pretty white dress which gave her the appearance of innocence and her hair had been brushed back by my mother into a head band.

"The judge or your social worker?" I asked looking down at her. Both were women.

"Both." She said looking up at me with anxious, light blue eyes. "I've lied to and used charmspeak on my social worker so much she hates me on sight until I use it on her again, and the judge was the one who charged me with trying to steal that car."

"You're a different person now." I said consolingly. "And you didn't steal the car. That wasn't your fault."

"They don't know that!" she said sounding a little hysterical.

It was alarming to see her like this, almost frightening. She was trembling, I'd never seen her looking so scared in her life.

"Will," she said so softly I could barely hear her. "What if this doesn't work? What if they decide to take me away?"

Words failed me. Unlike years ago when I'd first met her, where my main concern would have been how did I protect someone who was being bounced around in the foster system, now I couldn't imagine my life without her. What if they did take her away? Would she have to drop out of school? Stay at camp until she was eighteen and legally aloud to take care of herself? Only seeing her at school and a few hours at the shelter was bad enough, but not seeing her for months… How was I going to do that?

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there. If we get there," I said trying to keep my voice calm. "Nothing's been decided yet."

She shook her head apparently losing the ability to speak at this point. Several people were glancing at us, obviously wondering what two teenagers were doing sitting on their own in the middle of the court house.

An hour passed, and then another. Her hand was in mine for a while and while I felt frozen, she couldn't seem to sit still. She alternated from sitting, to standing, to pacing in front of the bench but nothing seemed to help. She looked sick to her stomach.

"Cali, you're going to wear a hole in the floor." I said eventually and while she didn't answer, she let me pull her back to sitting next to me. Wanting to get her mind off it, I helped her review her lines for the musical the school was putting on at the end of the year, and I was glad it seemed to work. She'd stopped trembling at any rate and Madison had been right, acting was something Cali seemed to genuinely enjoy.

Finally, after Cali and I had been sitting for almost three hours, the door to the judge's office opened and Cali's social worker walked out.

She glanced at Cali, her expression impossible to read but her eyes cold and appraising.

She was soon followed by Dave and my mother and Cali stood so quickly, she dragged me, who was still holding her hand, with her.

"What did she say?" Cali asked quietly, so nervous she was gripping my hand so tight I was losing feeling in my fingers.

"I'm sorry Cali." My mom said consolingly and Cali fell back onto the bench putting her head in her hands, tears in her eyes, but then my mother smiled. "I'm not sure how we're going to fit all your stuff in our guest room."

"What?" she said looking up suddenly and I turned to my mother.

"We did it?" I asked in disbelief.

"We did it." Dave said smiling as, tears sliding down her cheeks, Cali tackled my mother into a hug which she returned and Dave continued. "Cali's been legally emancipated from her father and is going to live with us as her guardians. She's coming home with us."

"Oh honey, it's ok." My mother said stroking Cali's hair as her shoulders shook more tears flooding down her cheeks with no signs of letting up.

"Thank you." She muttered her voice breaking.

"Of course dear." My mother said smiling and looking at me, her eyes also looked rather wet, but I couldn't stop staring at Cali.

"We did it." I said softly as my mother continued speaking softly to Cali who was smiling and wiping her eyes. "I can't believe we actually did it."

Dave put his hand on my shoulder and looked at me with something like pride, and the realization of what had happened was starting to sink in.

Cali was free.

She was going to finally be living in a stable home, with people who cared about her. Who loved her. And if her father ever did come back, he couldn't hurt her ever again. We had every legal right to keep him away if he tried to come after her. But none of that, not a single part of it was as significant to me as the tears that were still sliding down her cheeks as Dave also pulled her into a hug.

My parents started making plans for changing her documents at school, getting her medical information, and plans for moving her things from her apartment into ours, but I ignored this and continued to look at her.

Cali. The girl who wasn't afraid of anything, who hated emotion, who spent so long convinced she hated love and could never have a family or be happy, was crying with that very emotion, and it didn't look like she could stop.

I smiled as she turned to me, so happy she couldn't speak and I pulled her into a tight hug relief flooding through me like a life saving breath after almost drowning.

"Well I think a celebratory dinner is in order." Dave said and we all turned to him. "Cali, why don't you call your brother and we can all go out tonight? As a family."

I watched as Cali's eyes went wide as she recognized that for the first time, that included her. As the realization dawned on her she smiled, her eyes shining.

I took her hand as we left the court house and she dialed Max's number. I could hear the excitement in his voice through the speaker as she told him the news. I didn't I'd ever seen her smile so wide.

It ended up being a pretty late night, but also one of the best nights of my life. Usually pretty contained, Cali spent most of dinner laughing with her brother and talking animatedly with my parents and I.

Afterwards, Dave dragged us to book store to get Cali SAT prep books saying now that he was in charge of her education there was no way a child in his care wasn't going to college. She didn't even complain as he started making a study schedule for her.

On the way home from the store, we passed a free concert that was being hosted by several local bands in the park and my mother suggested we check it out. She took so many 'first family photos' that her phone ran out of space.

We finally made it back to the apartment at around eleven and after we'd stepped through the front door, we all paused. It seemed to hit us all at the same time the reality of the situation.

"Well." Dave said a little awkwardly as my hand found Cali's. "Now that you're here I guess we should settle some ground rules."

"I think that can wait until tomorrow." My mother said putting a hand on his shoulder and kissing his cheek.

He hesitated, but glanced at Cali and I and said. "Alright."

"Welcome home Cali." My mother said brightly and giving her a tight hug which Cali returned. "I'm going to go find some sheets for the guest bed. Or I guess it's Cali's bed now."

She released Cali, walking to the closet where we kept things like towels and extra sheets while Dave went to put her prep books in her room, muttering something about getting a "proper bookshelf" and I knew he was still thinking about the one at the shelter. He seemed personally offended by it.

They drifted off to their room and eventually, I kept my promise to Cali letting her pick a movie for us to watch, but I don't think I'd ever been less interested in a film and it wasn't because the words 'love' and 'secret' and 'kiss' were in the title. I'd pulled her in my lap as we watched, rested my chin on the top of her head, and locked my arms around her, half convinced I wouldn't release for the next several days. I didn't want to let her go. Being able to hold her meant she was there, that this was reality and not some sort of dream. Part of me was terrified I'd wake up and she'd be gone but as long as I could feel her I knew it was real.

We didn't move for a long time, even after the movie ended. Neither of us spoke but we didn't have to. I didn't even know what I would have said if I'd tried. Words didn't seem to hold enough meaning for how I felt at the moment. She was leaning against my chest and eventually I felt her body relax, and suddenly, she muttered something in French. I wasn't exactly great with languages, but from what I remembered of what she'd taught me, I recognized the word for bicycle.

"Cali." I said grinning slightly knowing what this meant.

"Mmm?" she asked quietly shifting slightly in my arms.

"You're talking in your sleep."

"What did I say?" she asked rubbing her eyes.

"I don't know." I said honestly. "It was in French. But we probably should go to bed." I said glancing at the clock on the DVD player which read three forty five.

"Mine or yours?" she asked still sounding half asleep and I laughed.

"Both. You go to yours and I'll go to mine. Otherwise Dave will kill us."

"Yeah you're probably right." She said sounding a little more awake and I finally released her.

She slid off the couch and got to her feet, but took my hand and together we walked through the now dark apartment to her new room.

"I still can't quite believe this is happening." She said softly looking around the room.

It was small but I knew she didn't care. The way she was looking at it was as if she'd stepped into a palace.

"Part of me doesn't want to go to sleep." She said still taking in the room. "I keep thinking if I go to sleep, when I wake up none of this will have happened."

"I know how you feel. Seems almost too good to be true right?" I said and she glanced at me.

"It's not a dream, right?" she asked softly. "I mean I know it's not." She shook her head. "But every night at the shelter I dreamed about this and you, and just when I started to really believe it was real, I'd wake up and-"

But I held her face between her hands and kissed her, really kissed her, for the first time since this whole nightmare had started and she was kissing me back in a way she never had before.

She was still wearing the dress my mother had picked out that was supposed to make her look sweet rather than a troubled kid, but the look she gave me when we broke apart was far from innocent. It reminded me of when she'd kissed me at the shelter and I couldn't seem to look away.

Her back hit the wall and I pulled myself closer to her as our lips met again and hands slid up my chest and around my neck as we continued to kiss. My heart hammered against my chest as I pulled her closer still, but I knew I had to stop things before they went too far.

"I should probably go." I said regretfully breaking away from her.

"You don't have to if you don't want to." She said quietly and maybe it was because she was a daughter of Aphrodite, or just because she was Cali, but as soon as she said it I felt rooted to the spot.

"I don't want to." I said with a slight laugh. "But I wouldn't put it passed Dave to put a lock on your door."

"Wouldn't matter much to you would it?" she asked with a smile that made me question if I _really_ wanted to leave.

"No." I admitted brushing a strand of her hair from her face. "But do you really want to start that fight?"

"You've got a point." She said and I knew that like me, she was far too grateful for what my parents had done for her to try and mess it up. "I guess I'll see you in the morning?"

"Yeah." I said with a nod and then with a great effort, I let her go and straightened up. "Night Cal."

"Night." She said softly and I hesitated for just a second, before turning to leave the room.

I'd just made it to the door when she spoke.

"Will?"

"Yeah?" I asked looking back at her.

"Thank you. For everything. If you hadn't-"

"Cali this was my parents." I said shaking my head.

"It was you too." She said walking to me and looking at my hands as she took them in her own. "If it wasn't for you none of this would have happened. You never gave up on me, no matter what I did you were always there. I don't know what would have happened to me if you weren't." she took a deep breath and looked up at me and while her tone was even her eyes were anxious, as if she were afraid to admit what she was about to say to herself, not just to me. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"You're not going to have to worry about that Cali." I said softly.

"Yeah, but what if-" she started fearfully but I cut her off.

"I'm always going to be in your life. No matter what happens, if you love me or hate me for it, I will always be here."

"Promise?" she asked softly and I smiled, but felt guilt surge through me. She was looking at me with an expression of complete trust that I did not deserve.

"I promise." I said and I found that even though she was all I wanted to see, it was difficult to look at her.

It wasn't a lie. Even if I hadn't been working for her mother, I would never leave Cali on her own. I wanted to be in her life, but if she'd known about my deal with her mother and how all this started, would she still want me?

I was able to justify ignoring this when she smiled. Did it really matter? If she was happy that's what was important right?

"I'll see you tomorrow." She said standing on her toes and kissing me on the cheek. "I love you Will."

"Love you too Cal." I said and with one final smile she closed her door.

Cpov

"I swear you have the strangest life I've ever seen Cal." Max said looking through his yearbook as we sat together in Sacchi's diner after his practice and my rehearsal. "How do you go from hating a guy for years, to winning cutest couple with him in the span of less than a school year? I mean, you're even living with Will now."

"What's your point?" I asked.

It was just us today. Three weeks had passed since I'd moved in with Will and his parents and it had become part of Max and my routine to meet at Sacchi's on Wednesday after school. While monsters still attacked occasionally, and Will had gotten into a slight disagreement with a confused minor god who thought Will was his son, everything in my life was going right for once.

"My point is how do you go from this," he said gesturing towards a picture of a pep rally where I was standing with the rest of the juniors, my hood up and looking like I wanted to strangle people around me. "To that." He finished flipping to the picture of me and Will in the superlatives.

"People change." I said shrugging taking a french-fry off his plate.

"Get your own food." He said annoyed.

"Can't, forgot my wallet." I said taking another fry.

"So?" he asked raising an eyebrow while reaching for his soda. "You can always get stuff for free."

"I'm trying not to do that anymore." I admitted and he choked on his drink.

"Ok it's official." He said through coughs as he set his glass back down. "Who are you and what have you done with my sister?"

"Very funny." I said rolling my eyes and he grinned.

"You know you're all over this thing this year." He said looking through the yearbook some more.

"Really?" I asked in surprise. I hadn't bothered to order one.

"Yeah. Drama pictures, track pictures, you're even in the one about the language department, maybe one of the kids in the yearbook club has a crush on you."

"Well they'll be disappointed," I said shrugging. "I kind of have a prejudice against photographers."

His smile faded and he looked angry.

"I still can't believe you didn't tell me all the horrible stuff he did to you." He said quietly, glaring out the window.

"Max, I don't want to talk about Dad." I said shaking my head.

"How can you still call him that?" he asked furiously.

"He is our Dad."

"That man is not my father." He spat in disgust and shifted his gaze. "And you should have told me."

"We've been over this, what good would it have done?" I asked with a sigh. "You were a kid."

"You're only two years older than me!" he said angrily. "Someone should have done something. You should have told someone."

"They would have taken me away." I said. "Would you have wanted that?"

"No." he said uncertainly, but suddenly looked angry again. "But I wouldn't have wanted you to be a punching bag either."

"Well it's over now. Even if he does come back, it's done."

"Do you think he ever will?"

"I've no idea." I said honestly. "Who knows? Maybe he's better off where he is."

"Well you certainly are." He said bitterly and as if he couldn't resist he said. "Cali, you should have told me."

"Max…" I started but he cut me off, his voice filled with a bitter sadness.

"You shouldn't have had to be alone."

"I wasn't alone." I said quietly. "I thought I was for a while there, but I wasn't. Not really."

"Will?" he asked and I nodded.

"Yeah he was always looking out for me." I said smiling slightly. "You know he punched dad once."

"Really?" Max asked looking happier.

"Yeah." I said with a slight laugh. "Knocked him out cold."

"Of course he did." Max said amused and we fell into a brief silence where he watched as I continued to steal fries from him.

"You know I'm really happy you got out of there Cal." He said eventually, his voice so full of sincerity I looked up at him.

He still looked sad, but his voice was steady when he continued.

"I guess I can kind of see why you hate your mom too. She left you in that situation and never bothered to see if you were ok. I might argue with my mom all the time, but she'd never let that happen to me. I guess that's why she didn't want me to see you or my dad either. She didn't want me to get sucked in."

I didn't know what to say to this, so I said nothing, but I continued to look at him as he spoke.

"I'm really glad you have Will now too. I think he's good for you, you know?"

"Yeah, me too." I said going back to unpacking and he hesitated for a second before continuing.

"So how is it living with him?"

"It's good." I said honestly.

"No problems?"

"He takes forever in the shower, but that's about it." I said shrugging but when I caught his expression I frowned. "Why?"

He looked embarrassed.

"I overheard him talking to Chris," he said uncomfortably. "He said you were having nightmares."

"It's not a big deal." I muttered looking at the table.

"Is it like when were kids?" he asked quietly. Max had been old enough to remember when my powers had started to develop, along with the nightmares that so often plagued demigod life. "You always thought they meant something bad was about to happen."

"What could happen?" I asked trying to avoid his question but feeling as if I'd accidentally issued a challenge to the Gods.

"I guess you've got a point." He said looking relieved but I felt my stomach clench.

I shouldn't have asked that. It was practically an invitation for the fates to get involved and the last thing I needed was for my mother worlds intruding itself into my mortal life.

"Everything's gonna be fine Max." I said not sure if I was saying this for him or myself.


	53. Chapter 53

Wpov

The next few weeks passed by in a happy blur and before I knew it, it was May and we were rapidly approaching the end of the school year. Being seniors, Chris and I were exempt from final exams, but Cali and Maddie were so busy with studying and rehearsals for the musical, the only time we ever got to see them at school was during lunch.

"What I still don't get." Madison said frowning as she saw all the posters that lined the cafeteria walls as the four of us walked to a table. "Is how Will can be so popular that he can have a campaign for prom king, when he didn't even want to run."

Some of my friends from the track team had nominated me for prom king without me knowing, and suddenly I was one of the last three left in the race without having made so much as a single flyer.

"He'll probably win it too." Chris said amused and giving me an annoying smile as he and I sat across from the girls. "Girls think he's pretty."

"Don't hate me cuz I'm beautiful." I said sarcastically while he and Madison snickered. Cali grinned.

"Boys are so sensitive." Madison said putting her arm around Cali and giving us a pitying expression. "You always have to joke about this stuff. Why can't you guys just admit you know when other guys are attractive? I call Cali hot all the time."

"I knew you had a thing for her." Chris said smirking at his girlfriend.

"Yet I get the strangest feeling you don't mind." She said with a raised eyebrow at him.

"Not as long as I get to watch." He said with a grin and Cali rolled her eyes.

"So are you guys even going to prom?" Madison asked looking between Cali and I as I took a bite of my hamburger.

"We are." I said between chews.

"Really?" Madison said looking at Cali in surprise who nodded in agreement. "Didn't see that one coming."

"Will needs to win his crown." Cali said blandly and again, Madison and Chris burst into laughter.

She raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Madison and Chris thought Cali was extremely funny, but I often got the impression she wasn't trying to be.

"Well you can't say your girlfriend doesn't believe in you man." Chris said still chuckling and clapping a hand on my shoulder. "In her mind you've already won."

"Who do you think is going to be prom queen?" Madison asked popping a tater tot into her mouth and looking around at the posters with pictures of girls. Since they were both juniors, neither Cali or Madison was eligible for the position.

"Who cares?" Cali said shrugging. "The whole thing seems kind of stupid to me."

"I bet you win next year." Madison said and Cali gave her a strange look.

"Why?"

"Because you're hot." She and Chris said in unison.

"I swear it's like you have the same brain sometimes." I said looking at them and they gave me identical mischievous grins.

We continued to talk about prom for a while but the topic eventually the topic turned towards graduation.

"So are you guys rooming together when you get to Prestion?" Madison asked curiously while looking at Chris and I.

"Are you insane?" Chris raising an eyebrow. "Why would I want to room. He's a total neat freak."

"I like to be able to find things." I said scowling. "Which isn't possible in your room."

"I have a system." He said stubbornly.

"And besides." I continued. "Chris is pre med. He's going to be up until three in the morning every night studying."

"Yeah, which is when you're going to get up for training." Chris said amused.

"But you're best friends." Madison said frowning.

"Yeah, and we want to stay that way." I said. "And if I roomed with Chris I might kill him."

"We'll see each other at practice." He said with a chuckle.

"What do you think about this?" she asked turning to Cali who looked surprised to be addressed at all. "You live with Will."

"I plead the fifth." She said obviously unwilling to give an opinion that would disappoint either her boyfriend or her best friend.

The bell rang and we threw out are trash before we entered the hall. Chris and I were walking the girls to French when we hit what seemed like a road block in the physics section of the school.

"What's going on?" Chris asked curiously as we hit a backlog of whispering people, mostly boys, gawking at something in a way that somehow reminded me of Cali.

"I dunno." I said frowning. "What do you think?" I asked looking down at the girls but neither of them were paying attention to me.

"Cali?" Madison asked looking worried but she had frozen. "Cali, are you alright?"

She muttered something angrily in French that I couldn't quite make out.

"What?"

"I can't believe she'd come here."

"Who?" I asked.

"Who do you think?" Cali asked bitterly and for a wild moment, I thought I was about to be greeted by the goddess Aphrodite but as Cali continued, her words didn't quite fit that scenario. "I swear this time she's gone too far." She muttered and I followed her as she elbowed her way through people to get to the center of the crowd. "She's totally obsessed with you!"

She continued to mutter furiously in a mix of Greek and French and I recognized several swear words in both.

"What's happening?" Madison whispered to me as we followed Cali through the sea of people but she was answered when we saw at it's center, was an extremely beautiful girl.

"What the-?" Chris said but Cali's voice drowned his out, cold with fury.

"What are you doing here Amorette?"

"Hello Sissy dear." She said and several voices rang out in surprise.

"Sissy?"

"Cali has a sister?"

"Will." Madison asked her voice low and her eyes narrowed. "Is this true? Does she really Cali's sister?"

"Technically yes."

"Technically?" she asked but I ignored the implied question and called out to the Amorette.

"Why are you here?"

"You know her?" Chris asked in alarm.

"We met at camp."

"What is it with you guys and camp?" Madison asked but no one answered her.

"I just met your little brother not to long ago." Amorette said amused while Cali's eyes flashed dangerously. "Dreadful temper." She said clicking her tongue and shaking her head as if in a disapproving manner. "It must be a family trait. He told me I was a liar for saying I was your sister. He thinks you would have told him something as big as having other siblings."

I saw her go stiff as people continued to whisper, obviously wonder what this new girl was talking about and what was really going on.

"I'm guessing you didn't tell him about mother either, or about Will."

"Shut up." She said furiously. "And go back home. You don't belong here."

"Will, what is going on?" Chris asked looking worried but I refused to answer. Cali was shaking now, and I could see her fingers twitching for her daggers which she wore bracelets today.

"I also met a nice boy named Tyler." She said glancing at me with a wicked smile. "Boy Will," she said in mock concern. "He doesn't like you. He had some very interesting stories though. I wonder if any of them are true."

Cali spat something in French but Amorette continued speaking in English.

"Oh I'm not here for you dear sister." She said. "So you can get off your high horse and deflate that suffocating ego being mother's favorite seems to have given you over the passed coupled of months."

"Then why are you here Amorette?" I asked trying to control my temper.

"Isn't it obvious Will?" she asked with a sickly sweet smile. "I came here to talk to you."

"Why?" I asked suspiciously.

"Because I have some very specific questions," she said her eyes shining with malice. "That can only be answered by you."

"Why would you need me to answer questions?" I asked feeling my eyes narrow. This couldn't be good.

"Because I know where you got that ring on your finger." She said and I felt my entire body go cold. While the crowd had gone silent as Cali and Amorette had spoken, whispers broke out again, getting louder with each new piece of information. Everyone wanted to know who this new girl was, and about Cali's mother.

"So does everyone." Cali said glaring at her. "It's a gift from his father."

"You really believe that don't you?" she said her tone almost pitying as she turned towards her sister. "You know Cali, I used to be really jealous of you. So much that I used to hate you but now…" she grinned. "Well, I guess I feel sort of sorry for the girl whose whole life has been a lie."

"What are you-" Cali said her eyes narrowing in confusion, but fear gripped at my heart with claws that were growing tighter and tighter with each passing second.

"What do you want?" I asked angrily but even I heard the fear in my voice. Cali looked at me uncertainly.

"I told you." She said simply. "I just want to talk."

"Will-" Cali started but I didn't look at her as I responded to Amorette.

"Fine."

"Alone." She added.

"You're not going anywhere until you explain what's going on." Cali said looking furiously between Amorette and I.

"I'll handle this Cali." I said shaking my head.

"But Will-"

"You need to find Max anyways." I said cutting her off. "You need to explain to him about Amorette, before things get too out of hand."

She glanced anxiously between the both of us. People were still whispering and I caught snatches of rumors in their beginning stages.

"Does Will have another girlfriend?"

"Was he dating sisters?"

"Alright." She said eventually and I felt guilty for using Max against her, but I knew he was the one thing she couldn't ignore.

She gave me one last searching look before turning and starting to walk away towards Max's locker and Chris leaned closer to me.

"Will," he said quietly. "I don't know what's going on, but I don't like it. Who is this chick? She seems crazy."

"They all are." I said shaking my head thinking of Cali and her siblings.

"What?"

"Just, keep an eye on Cali alright?" I said looking at Madison as well. "She's going to need friends after she talks to Max. I'll sort this out alright?"

"Alright." They said in unison, both looking unsure. But, after a final glace at me, they followed after Cali and I looked at Amorette.

"Good boy Will." She said amused and I knew that she knew that she had me in the palm of her hand. "Let's go outside and talk."

The bell rang as we stepped outside behind the school between the parking lot and the tennis courts.

"You know." She said stopping eventually, far enough that no one would be able to hear us even if there was a window open. "I have to admit, I never thought it would be you."

"What would be me?" I asked tersely looking over my shoulder to see if we were truly alone.

"To get involved with my mother." She said giving me a curious look. "Usually it's love sick teenage girls who get mixed up with her, but then again, you never were very interested in girls, and you never had a girlfriend." She tilted her head to the side with a cruel, but amused smile. "Now I guess I know why."

I didn't answer, but I knew she took it as a sign she was right for her smile grew.

"It explains why you were able to resist our charm too." She let out a hollow laugh. "So many of our sisters tried to seduce you Will, more than your oblivious little mind would realize. But when I saw you resisting Cali's charmspeak, well, I knew something was up."

She glanced at the ring.

"It protects you, doesn't it?"

"No." I said stubbornly but her smile vanished and was replaced by an ugly glare.

"Don't lie Will." She said furiously. "You may do it to Cali but don't do it to me, not when I know the truth."

"My father gave it to me."

"No he didn't." she said annoyed.

"How would you know?"

"Because you wear it on your left ring finger." She said stiffly. "That's the only place it works, right?"

I stared at her, utterly stunned.

"How do you know that?"

"It's like people who are married to show other people that they're off limits. And you've always been sort of off limits haven't you, to everyone but Cali. You were always there for the magnificent Callista Parker." She said as if the name put a sour taste in her mouth. "But that's not a very Hermes thing. Is it? But a man being utterly devoted to one woman. That's definitely my mother's style."

"You think Aphrodite gave the son of Hermes something, a weapon of all things?" I asked hoping to put enough distain in my voice to cast doubt in whatever she was thinking, but it didn't work.

"If he was working for her she would." She said and I cold shock go through me. "You are, aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said stiffly.

"Yes you do." She said with a smirk. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. You're her protector."

I didn't answer, but I didn't have to, she knew she had me cornered.

"You see, I've been doing some reading."

"Not from a Vogue I take it?" I asked bitterly but she was still too smug to be affected by the insult.

"About Cali." She said. "Or I guess in this case, all our siblings that are like her. The Athena kids aren't the only ones with an interest in the past you know. But Cali's circumstance has always been a bit of a mystery for us because most of the information about her situation is either very vague or has been lost over time. But in our attic, I found a scroll that had fallen behind the shelf that looked as if no one had opened it for years."

"What did it say?" I asked my mouth going dry.

"Not much more than we had figured out by now." She said inspecting her nails coolly but then smiling up at me. It was an evil thing. "But, it did have a list of every child like Cali known to us, the years of their lives, and," her smile grew. "Their protector."

"What are you talking about?" I asked feeling cold.

"What? My mother didn't tell you?" she asked sarcastically. "I guess it makes sense, even we didn't know. But every one of her little favorites had a hero assigned to them, just like you, to protect them from the scary monsters and anything that might want to hurt them." Her tone was heavy with sarcasm as she plunged brutally forward. "I can only imagine what she had to promise to get someone like you under her thumb." She made a bitter noise. "The best hero in camp, of course she'd get you for Cali's personal body guard."

"You're insane," I said stiffly turning to walk away. "Leave me alone. Don't talk to me or Cali again."

"There's an easy way to prove me wrong you know." She said.

I stopped and looked over my shoulder at her. Her smile was innocent, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"How?" I asked turning back to face her, my heart rate increasing.

"Let me take a look at the ring."

"There's nothing on it." I said wondering how on earth she'd get any information out of it. It only worked for me, that was part of it's magic.

"If there's nothing to hide, then you'll let me see it." She said smirking.

"Fine." I said pulling it off and handing it over. I didn't know what information she could get out of it, it was just a ring, but I was surprised when she whispered something in French and the ring began to glow. A swan appeared, as if engraved in firey gold on the band and Amorette smirked.

"What the…?" I started, I'd never seen that before.

"I knew it." She said as my eyes went wide.

"How did you do that?"

"It's a spell that only responds to the ring. It was on the scroll. Every one of my mothers 'special' children is supposed to learn it to be able to identify their gaurd incase they're facing an enemy in disguise."

She laughed at my blank shock.

"What? You thought finding her was all it could do?" she asked in amused derision. "Will," she said in a voice that was almost pitying. "This is an artifact created by the goddess herself in her husband's forge. It's been passed down for generations. But I guess she never told you."

She tossed the ring back to me carelessly and I caught it as a reflex.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"I already have what I want." She said nodding towards something behind me and I turned to see Cali standing there, frozen, staring at me.

Horror filled rolled over me as I caught her expression. Her eyes were wide, and she was shaking but I couldn't tell if it was rage or shock.

"Cali-" I started desperately reaching out to her but she pushed me away, looking disgusted.

"You," she started her voice shaking even worse than her body and her eyes darting back and forth between Amorette's and mine, seeing the truth in them. "You were working, for her?"

"Cali, wait-" I began trying to reach her again but she threw me off, violently this time.

"Don't touch me!" she shouted her charmspeak shaking the school and I was cemented into place. "You used me."

"No." I said quietly.

"You lied to me." She said softly, her voice still shaking but growing louder with each word. "Everything you said was a lie. You didn't mean any of it! None of it was real!"

"It was."

"SHUT UP!" she said covering her hands over her ears and there was a sound like thunder as her voice cracked the ground, shattering the earth between us.

Screams erupted from the school as windows shattered and it shook as if it had been hit by an earthquake. Car alarms were going off in the parking lot.

Her eyes wide and filled with tears, she turned to look at the damage she'd caused and uttered a small scream.

"No." she whispered her voice shaking worse than ever her whole body trembling.

"You need to calm down." I said fear spiking through me as she started to glow that familiar rose gold color. Her power was building.

"Stop talking to me." She said shaking hear head.

"Cali listen to me." I said desperately. "I know you're upset, but if you expend too much power at once you could-"

"I SAID STOP!" she screamed, a fire hydrant near the curb burst into the sky and I was thrown off my feet. The ring grew hot and flashed, glowing as bright as the light around Cali and suddenly, something very strange happened.

Everything did stop.

I pushed myself unsteadily to my feet only to see that the world around me had halted. The spraying water from the hydrant froze, suspended in droplets in mid air, the birds above us paused, hanging immobile in the sky, and the general roar of panic and chaos that was coming from inside the school had gone silent.

I turned behind and saw Amorette, frozen, her eyes wide in fear, but her face not fully changed from her self satisfied smirk at the destruction she'd caused.

Then ring continued to glow brighter, matching Cali's power and I knew it was the only reason I wasn't frozen with the rest of the world. She swayed, tears still streaming down her face, but when I caught her she pushed me away.

"Don't touch me." She said her voice hard and cold.

"Cali-"

"Go away Will." She said walking away, not bothering to look back

"You're not ok to be alone right now."

"I never want to see you again!" she said bitterly turning to face me her eyes green and blazing.

I stopped, the glowing was brighter than ever now, almost blinding and I finally saw what they meant when Cali and her siblings said she was an instrument of her mother's wrath. There was no warmth in her expression, almost no humanity. I'd never seen her look so much like her mother.

"Cali please." I said softly. I hated seeing her like this. In so much rage and pain. This wasn't my girlfriend and I wanted her back. "I love-"

"Don't you dare say that word to me." She said stepping closer to me and I backed away, now genuinely afraid. With each step she took I could feel the mortal half of her body being burned away. At this moment, there was nothing left of Cali in this girl.

"You don't know a thing about love Will Silverman." The ring was burning now, nothing more than a band of pure gold light. "You're a liar! You used it to take advantage of me, to manipulate me! You don't deserve to have that word in you mouth!" She said furiously and the air between us started vibrating with heat and power. Her eyes met mine and suddenly her voice was too calm. "You don't deserve to feel it."

A fear, worse than I'd ever felt before in my life gripped me as Cali reached out mercilessly and placed her hand on my chest right over my heart. I couldn't move I was staring, paralyzed by horrifying fear as her eyes flashed and I felt something cold, cold and terrible enclose around my heart. I felt an agonizing pain as this feeling tore straight through my chest, ripped open my heart, and was replaced by a freezing terrorizing nothingness.

But suddenly, the power around Cali flickered and died, as well as the fury on her face and was replaced by an expression of terror.

Warmth enveloped me as she removed her hand and the wonderful emotion came crashing back into me.

I staggered, taking an unsteady step forward but she backed away in fear.

"Stay away from me Will." She said sound panicked. She slightly as she backed away and her eyes were wide.

"But-"

"For your own good, stay away." She said and she took off running, unsteady on her feet as she bolted back to the school.

The earth crashed back into reality as time was restored. The water started spraying again, the school continued its state of general disarray, and the birds above us squawked at the car alarms that continued in the lot.

I made to ran after her, but someone grabbed me.

"Let her go."

I turned to see Amorette had returned to the present just seconds before everyone else.

"She shouldn't be alone right now."

"She might actually do it if you follow her." She said quietly, her tone something like awe.

She was standing, looking a little dizzy rubbing her temples. I wondered if being a daughter of Aphrodite, she'd been affected more by Cali's power than anyone or anything else.

"Truly amazing isn't it? The power that she holds." She muttered. "I thought I understood it but…"

Her voice died off and she shook her head, all trace of her arrogant smile had vanished. She looked as if she regretted coming here.

"You know Will." She said softly. "I once told Cali that I would see your heart break." She closed her eyes. "Never once did I imagine Cali would try to do it herself."


	54. Chapter 54

Cpov

I don't know what made me decide to follow Will and Amorette, but I wished I hadn't. Not when everything had gone so wrong, and I now felt the life I'd so carefully built and so desperately wanted was crashing down around me. I was barely aware of the students running out of the damaged building. I pushed them out of the way, as if they were my own deafening thoughts and swirling emotions, with one idea lodged firmly in my mind.

Get. To. Max.

'It was all lies.' A voice in the back of mind whispered but I locked it down refusing to feel. I didn't want to. Not when it was so painful I felt like I couldn't breathe.

I wasn't crying anymore. I refused to do that over someone like Will. Never again would I allow myself to be so weak. My mother thought I needed a body guard, but she was wrong.

I found Max not by his locker or evacuating with the rest of the school, but in the weight room pummeling a battered punching bag.

"Max." I started uncertainly, but he ignored me continuing to hit the bag.

"Max, c'mon."

He stopped and I saw blood dripping down his fingers from where he'd split his knuckle.

"What do you want?" he said bitterly glaring at me.

"I want to talk."

"I already talked to your sister." He said turning back to the bag. "I think I'm done talking for the day."

"Just let me explain."

"Explain WHAT?" he said suddenly shouting and hitting the bag with a final force filled punch then turning to face me, his expression the picture of fury. "How you've been LYING to me my entire life? How you've been meeting up with your sister at camp all these years and never told me ONCE?"

I winced but he wasn't finished.

"There I was just walking to class with Amber, when out of nowhere this super model looking nut job just pops out of the crowd and starts going on about how she's your sister and she's seen pictures of me at camp." He continued to glare at me. "And I KNEW she had to be even if I didn't admit it to her, because she's JUST LIKE YOU!" he almost screamed. "It's not natural how she looks, she's too beautiful. It's not NORMAL." He said running bloody hand through his hair. "But I thought she couldn't be Cali's sister. Cali would have told me. I know she has her secrets, but Cali would never hide something like this from me." His eyes narrowed. "But you did didn't you?"

"Yes." I said quietly and he let out a bitter laugh.

"I can't believe this." He said shaking his head still laughing slightly. "This is so typical of you. I thought you'd changed."

"Max," I said desperately. "I was trying to protect you."

"From what!" he shouted and I winced again. "You always say that Cali and so does Will. You're both always trying to 'protect' me from something so horrible you both can't seem to talk about it or stop talking about it."

"Max, I can't-"

"Of course you can't." he said bitterly. "No one else is allowed inside your little world are they Cali? And apparently that blonde haired nutcase's world too. That's all you guys ever do isn't it? Lie. Is that what they teach you at that stupid camp?"

I didn't answer him. I could only look at him feeling tears of frustrating fill my eyes. What was happening to me? I'd cried so few times in my life and lately, it was like I couldn't stop.

"You know what the worst part is?" he said his voice breaking and turning away.

"What?" I asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Even Will knew about her," he said bitterly. "Didn't he?"

I nodded feeling as if someone had twisted my heart at hearing his name.

"Not even he would tell me." He muttered darkly. "I thought we were friends you know? I mean, I knew he was cool and a senior and I knew he liked you, I could see it the first time I saw him look at you, but I actually thought he liked me. And even when I saw him falling in love with you, I was ok with it. Unlike everyone else who was always obsessed with you growing up, I actually thought he was pretty cool. I thought he actually cared about me. Unlike all the other boys that ran after you that never gave a damn about anything about you other than your looks, he seemed like such a nice guy. But now all I can think was that he was just trying to use me to get to you."

"He's a liar." I said coldly and he looked up at me.

"What?"

"Will's not who I thought he was either Max." I said bitterly. "Trust me you're not the only one who's mad at him right now."

"Why are you?"

For a second, I thought of saying I couldn't tell him. I thought about lying and making up an excuse for why I was so angry at Will but I couldn't. I found that the more I looked at my little brother, the only person that had truly been there for me my entire life, I couldn't lie to him any more. He was the only person that had always cared. He'd never needed a reason.

"Because this whole time he was working for my mother." I said eventually, not caring about the venom in my tone or how it sounded.

"What?" Max said his eyes going wide.

"Will never loved me." I said shaking my head with a sigh. "In fact, I doubt he ever even really liked me. He was just my bodyguard."

He let out a nervous laugh.

"Your bodyguard?" he said giving me a strange look. "What, does that mean?"

"What do you think it means?" I asked.

"I think you're sixteen." He said frowning. "Will was younger than that when he moved here, and why would she want a teenager? What on earth could you possibly need protecting from?"

"Will's not a normal teenager." I said my hands curing into fists. "And I'm not either. Remember said when we talk to each other, it seemed like we were different?

He nodded.

"It's because we are."

"What do you mean?"

"You wanted to know why Will and I show up to school sometimes looking like we spent the weekend in a bar fight right?"

"Yeah," he said quietly. "I didn't think you'd actually tell me."

"It's because we were fighting." I hesitated, not sure how I wanted to make him understand. How on earth was I going to tell him everything? He was going to think I was insane… "There's people." I said frowning. "People that my mom knows, that know about me, and they would prefer it if I hadn't been born."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that they tried very hard to get rid of me. And I guess she knew they would, which is why she sent Will."

"So… what?" he asked looking at me suspiciously. "Are you like some sort of illegitimate kid of a royal or something? Is that why you never talk about your mom?"

"No." I said with a sigh. "It's so much worse."

Wpov

Amorette left pretty quickly after Cali. I didn't know what she'd been thinking coming to our school and starting all of this. Maybe she hated me and Cali just that much, but after seeing what Cali could do, I had a feeling she regretted the whole thing.

I didn't know what I was supposed to do.

In the span of thirty minutes I'd manage to infuriate not only my girlfriend, but most likely the goddess Aphrodite, and my friends who I'd refused to tell what was going on.

To make matters worse, if that were possible at this point, Max was ignoring me too. I didn't know exactly what, out of the infinite set of things that could have sprang up from today's events, had turned him against me, but I'd spotted him after Amorette left, and he'd looked away without a single word.

I didn't go back to school, but instead went back to my apartment, waiting for Cali to come home in the mean time trying to figure out anything I could say that would make any of this seem ok.

So far, nothing came to mind.

By the time school ended Cali hadn't come back, but I wasn't too worried, I didn't expect her to. No doubt she went to go talk to Max or Madison, possibly even Sadie to try and figure this whole thing out. Chris had called and texted me a few times, but I was ignoring my phone, I wanted to keep the lines open in case Cali did contact me though I didn't know why she would.

But as the hours passed and I still hadn't heard from her, I started to get worried. My parents had come home now, and when they asked where she was, I told them we got into a fight and she was with Max blowing off steam, but it was dark out now, and I had to admit, I was relieved to hear the knocking on the door that came just after dinner.

"Look," I said as I opened the door. "I know you're upset with me right now, but if you just let me… Max?"

He was standing out in the hall way with a worried expression on his face.

"So, she's not here then?" he asked panic in his voice.

"Cali?" I asked. "No, I thought she was with you."

He shook his head.

"Will?" my mother called from the living room where she and Dave were watching the history channel. "Is everything alright? Who's at the door?"

"Don't say anything." He warned. "If anyone finds out your parents lost track of Cali, she'd be put in the system for sure."

"It's Max." I said as she leaned forward to wave at him.

"Hey sweetie, how is Cali, is she feeling better?"

"She went to Madison's." I lied. "Max just came to ask something about track for next year." I turned back to him. "Come with me."

I motioned for him to follow me into the nearest room which happened to be Cali's. The second I shut the door behind us, the words just came tumbling out of his mouth.

"I think Cali ran away." He said quietly.

"What?" I asked frowning.

He nodded.

"What makes you think that?"

"Amber says that Madison said she didn't come to class after I talked to her and-"

"You guys talked?"

"Yeah, and we got into a fight" He said sounding a little desperate. "Will, normally I wouldn't come to you after everything that happened today, but you're always able to find Cali when she's in trouble."

"What makes you think she's in trouble?" I asked quickly.

"Because she's gone absolutely insane!" he said frantically and I motioned for him to keep his voice down. "You should have heard the stuff she was saying Will. It was nuts. She told me she think's her mom is one of those greek gods we learn about in history." He said his eyes going wide. "She thinks she's being attacked by monsters, and that you're under some sort of oath to protector cuz she's got special powers or something. She's totally unbalanced."

"She told you that?" I asked incredulously.

"I know right?" he asked. "It sounds totally insane and-"

"Cali told you about her mother?" I asked grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him slightly so he would focus.

"Yes," he said giving me a strange look.

I swore.

"What?" Max said. "Will what the hell is going on?"

"Your sister's not crazy Max." I said starting to go trough her drawers to look for something, anything that could be used as a clue as to where she would have gone. "For the first time in her life she might have actually been telling the total truth."

"You believe this?" he asked in shock.

"I don't just believe it." I said looking through her closet and pulling out a demigod emergency kit, aluminum bat, duct tape, and an album of her favorite photos. "I'm living it."

"So you, you think you're half a god too?" he asked backing away from me.

"I don't think." I said tossing the things on her bed in frustration. "I am."

"But then you're crazy too!"

"We're not crazy." I said angrily. "You're just a mortal Max, you don't see the world for what it really is."

"But-"

"How do you explain the way your sister looks?" I asked him impatiently. "Or the way her sister looks? Insanely beautiful, unnaturally beautiful, with out even trying. How do you explain all the things she can do?" I felt a jolt go through me and without meaning to, I put my hand to my chest over my heart. "How she can fight and take down full grown men when she's tiny? She's our age Max. Think. How does she have weapons that she takes everywhere, but seems as if they come out of nowhere each time you see them?" I shoved a book written in Greek under his nose. "How do you explain this?" I said showing him all the demigod gear that had been shoved into her closet, a shield, a jar of Greek fire, and camp pictures with us and our siblings and friends dressed in armor.

"But this is insane…" he said putting his hand to his head.

"Yeah well," I said stiffly. "Skip the stage of disbelief and give me all the information you can about where she might have gone. Why did she run away?"

He didn't answer at first, obviously trying to process what he was being told.

"Max!" I said angrily and he shook his head, as if this would help him organize his thoughts.

"I think it was my fault." He said looking at his shoes. "When she tried to explain all this to me, I thought she was lying and got angry. After everything that happened to day, I kept screaming at her, I told her to go away. And," his voice caught. "I guess she thought I meant forever."

I sighed and sat down on the bed putting my head in my hands in frustration.

"But you can find her right?" he asked worriedly.

"Only if she activates her weapons." I said into my palms.

"What?"

"That's how it works." I said twisting my ring and watching his eyes go wide as it turned into a broad sword. "This sword, it's connected to her daggers. The second they activate, the ring pulses and tells me exactly where she is."

"So then do it now."

"I can't, weren't you listening?" I asked him irritated. "They only work when she's in trouble, defending herself."

"That's it?"

"I'm her body guard, not a psychic." I said irritated. "There's a limitation on what magic can do you know."

"So it's true then." He said his eyes narrowing. "The only reason you followed Cali around was because it was your job."

"It's not what you think." I started.

"I think you're a liar." He said.

"Well that's fair."

"And I think the only reason you ever even bothered with Cali was because you were doing what you were told."

"That's not true." I said quietly looking down at the photo album. On the first page there were three pictures, one with Cali, Malcolm, and Celeste, the second with her and I by the strawberry fields, and the third was a picture of her and Max at the peer, in front of an amusement park ridge at the beach.

"Like I'd believe you." He said his eyes narrowing even further.

"Believe what you want." I said taking out the picture and flipping it over to see 'Myrtle Beach august 22nd'. It was taken the summer before I'd moved in next to Cali. "It doesn't matter to me. But that doesn't change the fact that I'm going to find her."

"How?"

"Because I'm her body guard remember?" I said bitterly. "And I'm very good at my job."


	55. Chapter 55

Cpov

I sat with my feet dangling over the edge of the peer, watching the waves roll into shore. I wasn't exactly sure why I'd decided to come here. All I knew was that I wanted to be far from Will and anything that reminded me of him, and this was the last place I remembered being happy before he'd moved in next door and sent my life into a tailspin.

I guess it wasn't his fault. My life had been a mess before he'd gotten involved and objectively I knew he'd done a lot for me. Maybe that's what was so horrible about it, no matter how much I wanted to hate him, I couldn't seem to manage it. It used to be so easy, but now…

"You know, I came from the ocean," said a voice and I looked up to see a teenage girl with long brown hair, angelic features, and familiar eyes. "The whole thing was very mysterious."

"What do you want?" I asked looking away from her. Of course she would be here today. After years of hoping, and waiting, and praying, now, the day I couldn't have cared less about her, was the time she appeared.

"Is that how you greet your mother?" she asked.

"I've had a bad day."

"I'm aware." She said quietly sitting next to me on the peer, letting her feet hang above the water as well.

"It's your fault."

"Again, I'm aware."

There was a moment where neither of us spoke, we watched the waves, listened to the sound of the carnival behind us as people shrieked with laughter and talked to each other in loud excited voices. The smell of cotton candy, funnel cake, and sea salt drifted over me as the sun set in the back ground causing the water to reflect the oranges and reds in the sky. It a pleasant scene on a pleasant night, but I couldn't enjoy it. I was too miserable.

"Why are you here?" I asked her eventually flicking a piece of popcorn into the water and watching as several small fish attacked it.

"I'm here for the same reason every mother would be, to be there for her daughter after her first heart break."

"He didn't break my heart." I said bitterly.

"So you don't love him?" she asked.

I didn't answer by again I felt that sensation as if someone were squeezing my heart tightly, and I found it was difficult to breathe.

"Your power didn't fail when you tried to take away his ability to love?"

"It's never happened before." I said quietly.

"Yes you've never failed." She agreed.

"Not that." I said quietly. "I've never felt like this. So… So…"

"Shattered?" she asked softly putting a hand on my shoulder.

I nodded.

"I know sweet heart." She said quietly, in the tone I'd always imagine a mother should sound like. It reminded me of Will's mother.

"It's your fault." I said softly. "Your fault I feel this way."

"I didn't make you fall in love with him Cali." She said quietly. "Nor him with you. But you knew that. You out of all my children should understand…"

"You make it sound so easy."

She smiled fondly.

"You're probably the only person on this planet other than me who knows how complicated an emotion love is."

"Will didn't love me."

"Yes he did." She said gently. "You know he did. You could feel it and deep down you know he still does."

"Then why did he lie?"

"He had no choice."

"He should have told me."

"You would have rejected him if he did." She said. "But you can't run away from this problem."

"Why not?" I asked bitterly. I'd been running from problems my whole life. What was one more?

"Because you've opened a door you can't close. No matter where you go you can't change how you feel."

"I don't want to feel this way." I said angrily.

"In my experience people have very little choice in the matter."

"I want to hate him."

"But you don't." she said simply. "You love him."

"But I don't want to." I said furiously falling back and looking up at the blazing sky. The sunset really was beautiful but I closed my eyes wanting to fall out of time, even just for a moment. "I just want…"

I couldn't finish the sentence, but I didn't have to. I knew she would know.

I wanted my life back. I wanted things to go back to the way they were, blissfully ignorant, when I was happy, when I thought I knew Will.

"Did you though?" she asked curiously and I looked at her.

"Did you really think you knew him, completely?" she continued looking down at me.

I looked back up at the sky thinking back over the passed few months. There were so many things about him that I'd always wondered that were never explained. All the questions about him I'd had, everything Tyler had said, the nightmares…

"No." I said eventually.

"You always knew there was something more to him." She said shrewdly. "But you accepted it, just like he accepted you and everything you can do. Nobody is perfect Cali, but that's what love is. Acceptance. It's knowing a person is flawed and choosing to love them anyways." She looked back out to the water. "You wanted to know what he was keeping from you. Now you do. Does it change how you feel?"

"No." I whispered. "But I'm still angry."

"You're not angry." She said quietly. "You're scared. You think you should hate him, but you can't. And you know there's only one explanation for that."

"Love." I said. It wasn't a question, it was a statement. I was in love. Really in love, the kind you didn't fall out of, the kind that stuck with you no matter what happened. There was no escape.

"After all this time you're still afraid of it." she sighed. "But you need to accept this Cali. Really accept it. You know what he is and there's no going back. You know you can't change it."

"I don't want things to change." I suddenly realizing what I was so terrified of. "What if this ruins everything?"

"But what if it doesn't?" she asked in a thoughtful tone. "What if it makes it better?"

I had no answer for this.

"He'll find you."

"I know."

"In fact," she said looking over her shoulder. "He already has."

"What?" I asked sitting up.

Her response was to nod towards the end of the peer where Will was leaning against the railings, staring out at the water, obviously waiting for my my mother and I to finish.

"How-" I started but she smiled.

"You didn't think I chose him for no reason did you?" she asked. "He's extremely capable."

"Too capable." I said irritated.

"He's just making sure you're ok."

"Yeah I know. That's his job."

"That doesn't mean he doesn't want you to be." She said and I sighed.

"Let's just get this over with." I said.

"I'll leave you two to chat." She said with a smile and started walking in the direction of a kissing booth that was a ways down the boardwalk and I walked back down the peer towards Will.

"How did you find me?" I asked him not sure if I wanted to look at him. "Is it some spell my mother gave you or something? That allows you to follow me around?"

"No." he said shaking his head and reaching into his jacket pocket. He pulled out a photograph, the one of Max and I together on this beach years ago. "I just know you better than you think."

"How did you get here?" I asked him. We were hours from home, I'd managed to charm speak my way into a ticket, but I hadn't the slightest clue how Will would have gotten a ride this far.

"Omnipass." He said pulling a black card out of his pocket as well. "My father's the god of travelers, he gave this to me last time we saw each other."

"Of course he did." I said leaning against the railing next to him and looking out to the ocean. "So you'll be able to follow me, where ever I go?"

I didn't know why I was so calm at the moment, maybe because I realized there was no point in getting angry. If he was working for my mother than there was nothing I could do. He was going to be around. What was the point in fighting about it?

"I told you." He said. "You're stuck with me, whether you love me or hate me for it."

"Yeah, because it's your job."

"Maybe at first." He said. "but you have to know that's not the reason why anymore."

"At first." I said quietly. It was strange, just twenty four hours ago if I'd known Will was going to be in my life forever, how happy would have made me. But now…

My heart throbbed so painfully I decided not to examine this question.

"How did all of this even start?"

"I don't know all of it." He said shaking his head. "Your mother kept me in the dark about a lot of things, in fact, I'm pretty sure she's the only one who could tell us everything, but as for me. This all started because she came to me, and I agreed to make a deal."

"What was the deal?" I asked after a moment's hesitation.

He didn't answer at first. He looked at me for a very long time before looking away and back out to the water. When he spoke his voice was so low I could barely hear him.

"She'd get me out of prison and my mother and I would have a new life with the man of her dreams if I agreed to protect you."

"What?" I asked shocked into looking at him.

"Don't make me say it again." He said bitterly, refusing to look at me.

"You can't expect me to believe you. Not with out any explanation."

"My father is the god of Thieves Cali, what more of an explanation do you need?"

"But you never-"

"Steal?" he asked with a hollow laugh. "Not anymore but I used to." He said bitterly. "I used to be really good at it, and I had a particular talent for stealing expensive cars."

I thought back to the night of that party, I'd been ignoring it for months but never did I think that I would find out like this.

"I can't tell you how much trouble I got into Cali," he said quietly. "But I always managed to get myself out of it. But like most of my brothers and sisters, one day I got cocky. My friend and I stole a Porsche and we crashed with the cops right on our tail. The second I got out of the car I was tackled to the ground by one of the officers. I didn't even have a chance to run." He let out another hollow laugh. "Maybe that's why I'm so good at it, I spent half my life running from the cops."

"Is that why your mom kicked you out?" I asked softly.

"No." he said still glaring at the water. "She did that when I joined a gang."

I stared at him uncertain what to think. Objectively it made sense, it explained a lot but this was Will, the golden boy. Mr. Perfect I do everything right all the time had been nothing more than a criminal?

"So, as you can imagine, things weren't great for me. Your mom showed up disguised as a lawyer, said she knew who I was and that she could help me."

"And you jumped right into her little trap." I muttered.

"There was no trap," he said with a shrug. "she told me about you, and I remembered from camp who you were. She didn't tell me what you could do, just that you needed to be protected and might be difficult, but of course I took it." He said looking at me. "I was facing years in prison, and the way my mom had looked at me when she'd seen me in court, and every time she visited… you'd never want to see that look again."

I remembered the way Max used to look at me every time I screwed up. Maybe that's why I got along so well with Will. He understood.

"So yes." He said giving me an intense look. "I took the deal. Anyone would have. Of course I didn't realize how much trouble you'd be but anything was better than where I was headed. So we agreed. My records suddenly got lost in the system and the next thing I knew they were saying they had to let me go. And then almost as if by magic, my mother comes home all excited saying that the professor who'd been coming into the coffee shop she'd been working at had finally asked her out. They had a perfect whirl wind romance and by the end of the summer they were married. She was so happy." He said quietly. "We were going to move. I'd get a new start at a new school, and what amazing luck, a fellow demigod lived next door."

"Did she ever realize?"

"About her marriage? No." he said shaking his head. "Sometimes I think she knew there was more to my involvement with you than just you being another half blood. Dave, like the rest of the school thought I was obsessed with the pretty girl next door, but as time passed and you got more difficult. Well it was kind of obvious I wasn't telling them something. And I think my mother knew there was more to my sudden release than just misfiled papers."

"So it really was just a job?" I asked softly feeling my nails digging into my palms.

"At the start yes." He said. "But Cali," his eyes had found mine and I suddenly felt like it was hard to breathe. "It's not anymore. Your mother could come up to me and tell me I'm free right this second and I would still be around, if you love me, if you hate me, I will always be there to protect you."

He took my face in his hands.

"Cali, I've fallen so in love with you it's insane. You're all I ever think about, all I ever want to think about and knowing I was lying to you all this time was killing me. But I loved every second of it. I've loved every second you've allowed me to be with you, I didn't understand it before. I didn't realize it, but I've been in love with you since the moment I saw you at camp all those years ago. Fighting monsters with each other, or even just lying low and going to camp I will always choose to be with you. You could give me a million lives and I would choose you. And if I had the chance to go back and change anything, I wouldn't. Not the prison, not my record, or monsters. Not anything not even for a second. Because it all led to you."

I looked at him, really looked at him. He looked so sincere I wanted him to pull me close and kiss me like he did after a particularly grueling fight with a monster. Or all those nights right before we fell asleep together. But I looked down.

"How can I believe you?"

"I'll swear it on the river Styx."

"That's not good enough." I said bitterly pulling out of his grip. "All of this. You could be saying it just to keep my mother happy so I don't run away again and she doesn't ruin your life. And I don't want you to swear on anything in our parents' world either." I said angrily. "Say it to me, Cali, not just my mother's daughter and say it as Will, not just my body guard."

"Alright." He said. "I swear on my title."

"What?"

"If it proves to you that I love you. I won't run in the nationals competition."

"But," I started. "Your scholarship-"

"Doesn't mean anything to me if you're not around." He said taking a step closer to me.

"You really wouldn't run?" I asked quietly.

He nodded.

"But what about your future?"

"You are my future Cali." He said. "I don't want to go anywhere if you're not there."

"I'm not going to ask you not to run." I said looking down at my feet.

"But the point is you could." He said lifting my chin and putting an arm around my waist. "And I'd do it. And I swear that to you, the only girl I've ever loved."


	56. Chapter 56

Oh my goodness. I can't believe this is the last chapter. Thanks for all the reviews/favorites/follows! Thank you to everyone who read this far, I really hope you liked it. You guys are the best.

Anyways, here's the last part to the story. Hope you like it!

~Secrethalfblood

...

Wpov

Summer passed by too quickly. Before I knew it it was time to pack up and move to Prestion.

I looked around the campus with a mixture of excitement of anxiety. I'd known this day was coming for months but still, part of me couldn't believe I was actually here. I guess after everything I'd been through the past few years, I'd thought this was impossible. But it wasn't. I was here. This was happening.

"This place is huge." Cali said looking around with an expression that was almost intimidated. "How are you going to find your classes?"

I wasn't looking forward to a year without her, but she wasn't too far away, and she would visit.

"Let's go you two." My mother said excitedly. "You're in my old dorm building Will."

"Alright." I said grabbing one of the bags out of the trunk and Cali did the same.

The halls were packed as we stepped into the dorm. They were full of people like us that were carrying things like boxes, mirrors, and suitcases all trying to get to their rooms on move-in day.

"This building is co-ed?" Dave said frowning as he spotted two girls walking out of the hall bathrooms in towels and back into their rooms.

"Like you need to worry about him doing anything." My mother said rolling her eyes. "Between classes and practice he's not going to have time to sleep let alone talk to girls."

"But still…"

"Cali is right here." I said looking at them indignantly. "You don't think the fact I have a girlfriend factors into this at all?"

She grinned. Unlike Dave, she didn't seem worried at all.

"Here it is." My mother said looking at the room with the number eighteen on the door and we stepped inside to see that there were several boxes already stacked on the desk and bed on the left side of the room.

"Looks like your roommate's already here." Dave said dropping the box he was carrying on my desk and heading back into the hall.

"Will, you start unpacking." My mom said also putting down a box. "We'll go to go back to the car and get the rest of your stuff."

"Alright." I said letting the bag that was over my shoulder fall onto the bed and taking the one Cali was holding and tossing it on there as well.

She followed Dave back into the hall and I turned towards Cali who'd drifted over to the window.

"Nice view." She said watching as people walked back and forth between their cars and the buildings with their stuff. We were seven floors up which meant not only did I get a pretty good view of the lawn, but also river that ran next to campus.

"It's nothing compared to what I see everyday." I said putting my arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer to kiss the top of her head.

"Not anymore." She said quietly and for the first time I heard the disappointment in her voice. "I guess this is it, isn't it?"

"You make it sound like I'm dying." I said putting my chin on her head and wrapping my arms around her.

"I'm just going to miss you." She said softly.

"You realize that I'm going to see you like every weekend right?" I asked her. "And I'll be home over break. And I'm sure Mom is going to drag you and Dave to every track meet."

"Yeah I know." She said. "It's just weird not to have you one room away."

"Only for a little while." I said quietly.

We continued looking together out the window for about thirty seconds until she said.

"I should probably go help them get the rest of the boxes."

"Yeah and I need to start unpacking." I said letting her go.

"I'll see you in a bit." She said standing on tip toe to kiss my cheek then walked out to the hall. I saw a few boys in the room across the hall stick their heads out as she walked by. They quickly went back in however, when they caught my expression.

I turned to the box that Dave had left on the desk.

I knew I should have started unpacking my clothes so they could grab the suitcases on their next trip down, but what Cali said had affected me more than I'd let on. She was right, for the past few years Cali had been only a wall away. Even before we were dating it was nice knowing that she was there. She might have been a bit crazy at the time, but she was one of the very few people in my mortal life that knew everything about me, and was the only person who understood everything I'd gone through.

What was I going to do without her?

So instead of going through the bags, I opened the box full of my posters and pictures that I'd brought from my room. If she wasn't going to be here, I wanted to at least make it feel as much like home as possible.

I sifted through the pictures and smiled when I found the one I was looking for. Just as I had tacked it up on the wall next to my bed and started looking through the others, a tall boy with sandy blonde hair walked through the door, his phone pressed against his ear by his shoulder as he carried in a huge card board box.

"Yeah Mom," he said sounding exasperated. "Ok, I won't forget where the car is parked. Yes, I have them! Mom the box is literally in my hands right now. Mhmm." He said setting the box down. "Ok, bye."

He hung up the phone then seemed to notice me.

"Oh hi," he said. "You must be Will."

I nodded.

"I'm Tony." He said extending a hand that I shook.

"Who's that?" he asked curiously noticing the picture I'd put up. It was of Cali and me from our latest stay at camp.

"That's my girlfriend." I said and his mouth fell open.

"Are you serious?" he said dropping my hand and taking a closer look at the picture.

"Yep, that's Cali."

"You're kidding..." he said looking at me skeptically, as if he didn't believe me.

"Will," Cali said stepping into the room with a laundry hamper full of blankets and sheets. Tony looked like he'd been hit by a truck. "Apparently there's some sort of problem with your RA. He says each time I visit in need to check in with him…"

I raised an eyebrow and realization dawned on her.

"I'm kicking his ass." She said and I laughed.

"Cali, calm down." I said gabbing her arm before she walked back down the hall. "Meet my room mate, Tony."

"Hi." She said flashing him a smile and I thought he might faint. "Are you ok?" she asked in concern when he sat on his bed looking dizzy.

"Fine," he muttered and looking away. "Hi."

"You're Mom's on the way up with the last box." She said turning back to me. "You have anything for me to take back to the car?"

"Not yet." I admitted and she seemed to notice that the picture was the only thing that I'd unpacked.

She smiled.

"Take this down." I said unzipping one of the bags, dumping the clothes onto my bed, then tossing it to her.

She easily caught it and walked back into the hall.

"How?" Tony asked looking up from the wall now that he was sure she was gone. "Just… how?"

"Kind of a long story." I said with a grin. "We were neighbors until she moved in with me and my parents."

"They let her live with you?" he asked incredulously.

But before I could even start to explain, my mother walked into the room.

"Will," she said in exasperation when she spotted how little progress I'd made. "You can put up pictures later. We've got to move the car soon."

"Alright." I said unpacking my clothes as she struck up a conversation with Tony. I faded in and out but from what I gathered, he was from Vermont and planning to major in chemistry.

Eventually Cali and Dave made it back to the room and after I'd put away everything important, we carried the suitcases and boxes back to the car.

"Do you think you'll be ok going to the student mixer alone?" my mother asked after we'd moved the car to a street removed from the chaos of the main campus. "Coach Thompson and his wife invited us to lunch but I wasn't sure if you'd want us to go with you or not."

"We'll be fine." I said taking Cali's hand as she slid out of the back seat.

"Alright." She said looking at me with a mixture of pride and disappointment and part of me wondered if she'd wanted me to ask her to come. "Well, I guess we'll meet back here in a few hours and then go to dinner?"

"Sounds good." Dave said and after one final sad smile, my mother allowed Dave to pull her in the opposite direction Cali and I would be heading to the Freshmen Mixer.

"Something tells me my evening is going to be ice cream and looking at your baby pictures." Cali said looking after my mom.

"I hope not." I said frowning. I wasn't a very cute kid…

"You know this place is really nice." She said looking at the mix of modern buildings and old town houses that dotted the campus. The brick side walks were lined with large trees and the grass looked obsessively maintained.

"Think you might apply?" I asked curiously.

"We'll see what happens when my SATs results come." She said evasively.

We walked to the center of campus where a series of things like over sized boxing, mechanical bulls, and bouncy castles were set up on the lawn for the incoming freshman and their families to get to know each other.

"I can't see anything." Cali complained standing on her toes trying to look over the crowd as we checked out the pit band that was preforming some of the songs they were known to play during the football games.

"C'mon on." I said amused dropping to one knee, she looked down at me and grinned, then let me pick her up and carry her on my back.

"Better?" I asked as she rested her chin on my shoulder.

"Much." She said sounding amused.

"Jesus Cali, you really are short."

I turned, which meant we both turned, to see Chris, holding hands with Madison and grinning at us. They were both wearing ludicrous balloon hats, in the school colors of sky blue and slate gray, as well as balloon swords.

"I'm not short, everyone else is too tall."

"You keep telling yourself that." He said amused then looking down at Madison. "So, you convinced yet?"

"I told you." She said looking stubborn. "I'm going to New York."

"What are you talking about?" Cali asked forgetting her irritation with him and glancing at Chris, but it was Madison who responded.

"Chris is trying to convince me to apply." she said rolling her eyes. "But I've told him a million times I'm going to a school where I can also see shows on Broadway."

"But there's a really good program here."

"I don't care how good it is."

"But I'm here."

"I will use this." She said brandishing the balloon sword at him and he grinned.

"They've got a theater program here?" I asked interested.

"See!" Chris said looking down at Madison. "Now you have to come here, you know Will's gonna convince Cali. Don't you want to go to school with your best friend?"

"Leave it alone Chris." She said warningly.

"But-"

'WHACK'

"Told you I'd use it." Madison said cackling and running as Chris chased after her determined to repay her with a balloon strike of his own.

"What do you think?" I asked looking at Cali who was watching Madison amused.

"About?"

"The school. If you could study theater here, would you come?"

Despite having only just discovered her interest in it, Cali had developed a passion for acting that no one had really seen coming. After the spring musical, Madison had convinced Cali to get involved with her local theater troupes and she'd burned through all the novelizations and film adaptations of classic musicals and plays Madison let her borrow.

"Do you really think I'd get in?" she asked.

"Anything's possible."

"I'll think about it." she said and I grinned.

Eventually, I let Cali down and we continued walking around the even playing some of the games. We ran into Tony at the 'How Much is Too Much?' booth where they spread information to incoming students about partying and alcohol consumption. At the booth was a contest to see who could pour the correct amount for a shot with water, where Cali won a school shirt. We bumped into Madison and Chris a few more times, but by the time we were supposed to meet my parents back at the car it was just again.

Dinner passed much faster than I expected, and before I knew it, I was hugging my teary eyed mother goodbye in my dorm room.

"You're going to have so much fun." She said and though her eyes were watering, her smile was bright. "Make sure you get to practice on time tomorrow ok?"

"I will." I said grinning as she released me.

"I'm really proud of you." She said wiping her eyes. "Oh damn, I told myself I wasn't going to cry."

"It's alright Karen." Dave said putting a hand on her shoulder as she tried to regain her composure.

He turned to me and while I went to shake his hand, I was surprised when he too gave me a hug.

"I'm proud of you too Will." He said smiling his eyes bright behind his glasses. "I hope you know that I truly have come to see you as a son."

I was stunned into silence, but he didn't seem to require an answer. Instead he looked down at Cali.

"Well you're up." He said she too stepped into an embrace.

This one was longer than the other two, but even then I wasn't completely ready to let her go as we broke apart.

"I'm going to miss you." She said. She wasn't crying like my mother, but her eyes were deep blue, and I knew she was sad.

"I'll miss you too." I said and my mother was tactful enough to start a conversation with Dave as we continued our goodbyes.

"You're not going to forget about me now that you're a big university student are you?"

"Not possible." I said and she smiled. "Besides, you'll be here next year right?"

"I guess I found motivation for Senior year." She said vaguely.

"Yeah you'd better I won't be around to keep you in line."

She rolled her eyes but laughed and kissed me.

"Call me tonight?" she asked hopefully.

"Every night." I answered.

"Your roommate's going to hate you." She said laughing again.

"He's seen you. I think he understands."

She smiled and Dave glanced at his watch.

"We should really head out." He said looking at me. "You all settled?"

"Yeah." I said with a nod.

"Then I think it's time." He said matter of factly. "Karen? Cali?"

They nodded, and my mother gave me one final hug and beam of pride. They filed out of the room. Cali was last to leave, and she looked over her shoulder to gave me a final smile before walking towards the elevators with my parents.

Without really meaning to, I crossed the room to the door and watched her walk down the hall. She'd linked arms with my mother who was dabbing at her eyes with a tissue Dave had given her.

They stepped into the elevators and just as the doors closed Tony had made it back to the room.

"Hey." He said noticing what I was staring at. "I just got invited to hang out with some girls on the second floor, but I'm guessing you're good?"

"Yeah." I said. "I've got practice tomorrow morning anyways, sorry."

"It's cool, I didn't really expect you'd want to go anyways." He said his eyes glancing at the picture of Cali on my wall. "You know most guys wouldn't want to come to college already in a relationship, but I guess most people could understand in your case."

"So I'm guessing you won't care if she visits a lot then?"

"Nah man." He said grinning. "But I do have a condition."

"What is it?"

"If she's got a sister, you need to introduce me."

I laughed.

"I'm not sure I'd be doing you a favor there." I said thinking of Amorette. "They can be a bit intense."

"What about Cali?" he asked curiously.

"Intense doesn't even begin to cover it." I said amused and sitting on my bed.

"You don't seem to mind." He pointed out.

"It's one of my favorite things about her." I said honestly. "You never know what to expect."

"Most guys wouldn't like that." He said giving me a thoughtful look. "Regular girls are confusing enough."

"I enjoy a challenge." I said with a shrug.

"I think most people would if they looked like her." He said flatly. "So, you're one of those guys that's like totally about his relationship?"

"If you want to call it that I guess." I said frowning.

"Hey I'm not judging." He said shrugging. "It's just when you said you were a school athlete in your emails I'd figure you'd be a jock tearing through the place. I didn't expect you to be tied down that's all."

"Well believe it. 'Cuz that's not changing."

"Think you'll survive long distance then?" he asked grinning and I through back over the years and everything that Cali and I had been through. Monsters, magic, mortals like Tyler and her father, and even Gods.

"I know we will." I said certainly. Cali and I had been through much worse, and there was nothing in the mortal or our parents world I would give her up for. I didn't care of Zeus promised me Olympus itself.

I'd sworn to be a part Cali's life no matter what happened, and although my motives today were very different, I had no intention of ever going back on that promise. I didn't care what the Gods through at me. As long as she was with me, I could handle anything.

...

Well I hope you liked it! Feel free to imagine your own endings for the characters but, if anyones interested in where I imagined them, that's below. Thanks for reading!

~ Secrethalfblood

...

Will goes to school and follows in his mother's footsteps by training at the Olympic level. He had to take a year off his Junior year for the games but doesn't regret it because it allowed him to graduate the same year as Cali, who, after she left high school ended up at Prestion as well where she studied theater. After school she becomes an actress, and though she'd spent most of her life trying to avoid attention, she ends up ironically becoming very famous. She puts her influence to good use though, and has becomes an activist against child abuse. Much to her frustration however, most of the media was more interested in her relationship with popular Olympian Will Silverman than her cause.

Madison ended up in New York, where she also studied theater and preformed on broadway for a few years. Chris, who despite being an athlete, managed to graduate in nine semesters, moved to New York to live with Madison and they eloped before he applied to medical school. The couple are still best friends with Cali and Will.

Max and Amber broke up in their sophomore year but remained friends. It took him a while to believe that Will and Cali's parents were Gods, but after an adjustment period, he accepted it, realizing it was the only explanation for what had gone on in his sister's life. Eventually, he did end up in Florida, where he studied graphic design and started a popular webcomic called 'Chaotic Cali', a story about the adventures of trouble prone teenager and her boyfriend who always stumbled into one problem after the next, which he swears has nothing absolutely nothing to do with his sister and Will. He and Cali are still extremely close and he visits her every break.

Sadie and Cali remained friends and Sadie constantly video called her for her opinion on her school projects as she went to study fashion. While she originally wanted to be writer in a fashion magazine, she ended up becoming a stylist for various celebrities she met through Cali.

Celeste stayed as one of the most loved head Councilors of cabin 10 and she and Cali remained close. To no one's surprise Amorette ended up a model. Like Cali she grew to be extremely famous, which was a little awkward seeing as they often ran into each other at celebrity events. Eventually, after a while they were able accept each other as sisters, though because their personalities are so different they would never be very close.

After she graduated high school, Cali never saw Tyler again. No one was really sure what happened to him or her father, but years later, she finally tracked Grayson Parker to a small town in France where he'd first met Aphrodite. Better able to control her abilities, Cali manages to fix her father and is currently working repairing her relationship with him.

Despite his initial anger at lying to him, Max forgives Will and the two become very close. Together they encourage Cali to pursue a relationship with her mother and even managed to convince the goddess to come to Cali's surprise 23rd birthday party, which they worked so hard to make everything perfect. It had to be if Will was going to propose.


End file.
